Rhythm of Life
by DragonScouter
Summary: A Cybertronian escape pod falls to Earth. The Autobots find evidence of a faction that is supposed to be a battlefield myth, well, myth except to a certain medic. What happens when both myth factions make an appearance on Earth? All will soon find out. Rated T because I am paranoid.
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer: I only own my OCs.**

* * *

**Authoress: *sigh* It looks like I'm alone again.**

* * *

Prologue

Alarms blared throughout the ship. Cannon fire rocked it from side to side and the inhabitants of the ship knew that the ship would blow due to pressure in the main fuel room. So, the inhabitants were doing the only thing that they could; they were retreating in stasis pods to separate locations.

"Is everyone else inside of the pods?" A tall figure asked in a mech voice.

The figure next to him glanced around and shook their helm before saying in a femme voice, "No, I don't see Beatdrop anywhere." The femme then turned to the mech and said, "Get in that stasis pod there and head out." She then turned to leave.

"What about you?" The mech asked while taking hold of her wrist.

The femme looked at him and said, "I'm going to get Beatdrop from wherever he is and go with him. I'll call as soon as I can."

"We can stay with her." Another figure stated in a femme voice as she pointed to herself and an obvious mech next to her.

The mech sighed and said, "See you as soon as Primus is willing."

The femme smiled at the mech and kissed him on the cheek before saying, "Primus willing, I will see you soon brother."

She then watched as the mech got into the pod with another bot and the pod launched. There was now only one pod left and the femme knew that it would seat her and the other bots here. Now the trick was finding Beatdrop.

"I'm going to find Beatdrop. Be ready here to get in the pod and escape." The first femme said.

The other two nodded and so the first femme ran out the door.

Running down the halls of the ship, the femme had an idea where the communications bot would be. Running into the command room, she was proven correct as she saw him standing at a terminal with one of his tentacles attached to the main drive.

"We have to leave now!" The femme yelled at the mech.

But, the mech shook his helm and said, "I'm not letting all of our information fall into their servos. Just give me a click. I'm almost done downloading this file."

The femme huffed in impatience and said, "We might be offline in a click."

A nano-click later, Beatdrop disconnected his tentacle from the monitor and smiled at the femme before saying, "Got it all."

The femme nodded and said, "That's all nice and everything but they are about to blow up the ship!"

The mech stared at her in shock before the two of them ran out of the room and back to the launch bay. They then clambered into a stasis pod with the other two and soon the pod was ejected.

"See, nothing wrong with me grabbing our data. We got out just fine and in one piece." Beatdrop said to them.

But, that statement was put to the test when, suddenly, a giant explosion from behind them rocked the escape pod.

"You just had to say something didn't you!" The unknown mech yelled as the pod turned over from side to side.

"My bad!" Beatdrop yelled back.

They all then felt a prick in their main energon fuel line and the last thing that all of them heard was the thrusters igniting on the pod, indicating that this was going to be a long trip.

* * *

Almost as soon as the pod disappeared from sight. A small ship, probably no more capable then holding six bots comfortably, pulled up on the wreckage of the destroyed vessel. Inside this new ship, though, there were only three bots. One was a red and orange car mech who had an ocean blue visor. Next to him there was a white car mech with blue and black markings and he had a blue visor. Finally, the third bot was a black and gold motorcycle mech and he had a weird visor that almost looked like it would split in two that was the same color as the white car mech's visor.

"Frag it we were too late!" The white car mech yelled as they looked over the damage.

They had picked up a distress signal while they had been following a set of coordinates given to them through a transmission by their leader.

"Well, it did takes us some time to get here. I wonder what happened." The red and orange car mech questioned. It was more to himself but the question was still out there.

The motorcycle mech studied the scene before them a little more before saying, "It was most likely an ambush. From the size of the debris, the ship must have been pretty large. It may have even been able to stand up to the Nemesis given just how massive the debris is."

They all then stared at the debris for a little longer. It was surprising that such a large ship could be blown to bits. They knew that it would take a lot in their weaponry to take down a ship the size of the Nemesis period, more to blow it to bits like what had happened here. Unless, the enemy had somehow gotten inside the ship. Then, it would be more logical as to why the ship blew. But, they wouldn't know anything for certain until they found a bot who was there and could tell them exactly what happened. "Where there any survivors that appeared on our scans?" The white mech asked.

The red one shook his helm and said, "The scans didn't pick up anybot but we did pick up multiple ion trails."

"Escape pods." The black mech stated. "So there were survivors."

"Yeah, just not any that are still here." The white mech stated.

"What is the freshest ion trail? Maybe we can catch up with the pod and ask the occupants what happened?" The black mech asked.

The red mech typed a few things into the monitor in front of him before saying, "It is heading toward the same location where Optimus said he was stationed. I can't tell if the pod was preset to go to those coordinates but it seems as if we are heading in the same direction."

The other two mechs nodded before the black one said, "Ok, I want engines on full. We need to catch up to that pod. We still aren't sure if the bots inside were ally or friend."

They then followed the ion trail through space, not knowing where they were headed.

* * *

Once the second ship had disappeared, the cloaking for the warship called Cauterize fell. The ship was about one third larger than the ship that it had just destroyed. Inside, its occupants were in deep discussion.

"Great, you blew up the ship! What are we supposed to do now?" A mech voice asked.

"Well, you could tone it down a bit Spittor. I was trying to disable it but the blasted ship turned at the wrong time and I must have hit the engine room." A different mech voice stated.

"So, what are we going to do now Blood Root?" The mech identified as Spittor asked.

"Well, you two could stop arguing. It is giving me the worst processor ache." A third mech voice stated.

"Good. It will be one for the hundreds that you give us with your blasted sounds you call music, Soundbite." Blood Root retorted.

The mech identified as Soundbite growled and stood before saying, "Let me show you what my music can do Blood Root. I'm sure you can still fight without the use of your audio receptors."

But, before he could lunge at Blood Root, another, more commanding and powerful mech voice, said, "Enough! All of you."

"Contagion, what are we going to do now that the ship has been blown to bits?" Spittor asked.

The mech called Contagion shook his helm and said, "If you three had been paying any sort of attention to what was actually going on here you would know that I have already sent out most of the other Virons to follow the ion trails from the escape pods. I am going to be leaving Pitch here to man the ship while we four will be following the escape pod that escaped last as well as that Autobot ship."

"You think that she is on that escape pod, don't you?" Blood Root asked.

Contagion let out a snort and said, "There is no doubt in my processor that she was on that escape pod. But, I doubt that she went alone."

Blood Root smirked and said, "Maybe that brother of hers will be with her? I have some unfinished business with him."

But, Contagion shook his helm and said, "I doubt that he is on there. She wouldn't have kept him with her. Just in case something happened and he needed to step up to take over the Dragon Scouters, she would keep him far away from her."

Spittor stood up and asked, "So, are we going to get this show on the road or are we going to sit here until we rust?"

Soundbite shook his helm and said, "You just need to go with the flow Spittor. But, I have to admit, it has been awhile since I have offlined any Scouters and I am quite excited to be able to get the chance."

Contagion smirked and nodded before saying, "Let's get to the auxiliary ship and see if we can't catch up to the escape pod?"

The other three mirrored his smirk before they got into the ship, which was called the Razorback. Once they were all ready, they launched the ship and started to hunt down the ion trail.

* * *

Raf let out a relieved sigh as the bell rang to end last period. Even though he like school, he couldn't wait to get to the base. Hopefully, Miko wouldn't do anything crazy. Of course, that might be too much to hope for. She seemed to have a need to put herself in danger.

Standing up with the rest of the kids, Raf grabbed his stuff and was about to walk out when his last period teacher, his biology one, said, "Ok, have a good day class. And don't forget about our trip to the desert tomorrow. Make sure to wear lots of sunscreen because it is going to get hot."

Raf sighed. He still hadn't told the bots about the trip yet. Hopefully, 'Bee wouldn't freak out. Walking out of the school, Raf smiled when he saw Bumblebee parked in front of the school.

"Hey 'Bee." Raf greeted his friend as he hopped in the passenger seat.

"_Hey Raf. How was school?_" Bumblebee asked.

As the drove, Raf answered, "It was just like normal." Raf was going to wait until they got to base to tell him about his field trip.

"_Did you have any problems?_" Bumblebee asked.

Raf knew he was talking about Vince and his bullying habits. Luckily, today had been a free day. Shaking his head, Raf smiled and said, "Nope. Today was great."

"_Great!_" Bumblebee beeped in excitement before they entered the base. Once 'Bee came to a stop, Raf hopped out and watched as Bumblebee transformed.

"Hey Raf, you tell the bots yet?" Miko suddenly asked as greeting.

"Tell us what?"

Raf turned when he heard Optimus voice. "The school is letting my biology class go out in the desert for school tomorrow to learn some more about it."

"_Do you want me to come with?_" 'Bee asked.

"Sorry 'Bee, but I don't think that your alt mode would blend in very well out there." Raf stated.

Optimus nodded and said, "Rafael is right Bumblebee. You won't be able to go. But, I am still concerned for your safety."

Raf understood that. With the 'Cons out there, it was always going to be dangerous for him to be out alone. "It should be alright Optimus. The 'Cons are just as worried about staying out of the public's eyes as you guys are so I don't think that they would attack a whole class."

Optimus seemed to think about it for a little before nodding and saying, "Then I don't see a problem with this, as long as you don't go off on your own because while the Decepticons won't attack you while you are with a group, they will certainly try to get at you while you are alone. Plus, if we are not there, they would most likely succeed in capturing you."

Raf nodded and said, "I'll be careful." He then ran up the stairs and grabbed one of the controllers for the racing game. He was glad that Optimus said he could go. Though, what he would have done if Optimus had said no would have been interesting.

* * *

**Authoress: And I get someone to talk to!**

**Beatdrop: Its just me but that's all we need.**

**Authoress: How does it feel like to be the newest OC Beat?**

**Beatdrop: Well, it feels great. I just get to sit back and have fun.**

**Authoress: *smirks* We will see.**

* * *

**AN: Ok, so here is the beginning of another new story! This one is going to be loads of fun and should keep you all on the edge of your seats. Anyone know who the three Autobots are? Or, if you have read my stories before, who the three Dragon Scouters with Beatdrop are? Well, leave behind a review and have a great day! =D**


	2. Rough Landing

**Disclaimer: I only own my OCs.**

* * *

**Beatdrop: Hey Authoress? When are we going to get some tunes in?**

**Authoress: You'll see Beatdrop. But, while we are on the talk of tunes, can you download anything you want and put it on whatever device you want?**

**Beatdrop: I sure can...*asks suspiciously* Why?**

**Authoress: Well, there was a new song that came out that,**

**Beatdrop: WOULD you look at the time? I got to split! *runs out***

**Authoress: Beatdrop get back here! *runs after him***

* * *

Ch. 1: Rough Landing

A giant slam aroused one of the bots in the escape pod from their stasis lock. Their pod must have crashed down somewhere, but the where part of that was still to be determined. Glancing around at their travelling companions, the awake bot typed a few things into the escape pod's computer. It did not take long for the others to come out of their stasis lock as well.

"Ugh, I feel like a planet slammed into me." Beatdrop groaned. He then glanced up at the awake bot. "How come you always wake us up so early Pandimala?"

Pandimala shook her helm and laughed. "Well, Beatdrop, it might have to do with your habit of staying in recharge too long. But, I can't take all the credit this time."

"What do you mean?" Beatdrop asked.

"What she means, Beatdrop, is that our impact with whatever planet we are on woke her up first." The second femme answered.

Beatdrop had a look of realization come onto his faceplate before he said, "Ah, that makes more sense. Thanks Balm." He then turned to the other mech and said, "Good thing you bonded to a smart femme Stormfire."

Stormfire, the other mech, smiled and said, "I'm just that lucky Beat." He then looked at Pandimala. "Hey 'Mala, can you look up vehicle forms for us all? I really don't want to get out of here without one."

But, Beatdrop let out a hurt gasp, fake of course, before saying, "Stormfire, I can't believe you. I am supposed to be the intelligence officer here. That means I get to look up the alt modes and see what the dominant species on the planet is."

Balm let out a laugh before saying, "He is right dear. Let him do his job. You wouldn't want him having all of your guns and acting like the weapons specialist, would you?"

Stormfire shook his helm. "I guess not." He then turned his gave to Beatdrop and said, "But, I don't want a repeat of what happened on Sigma Six. The twins wouldn't stop laughing at me for stellar cycles."

They all then waited as Beatdrop scanned the local information hub. It took him a few clicks, but he finally turned to them and said, "Ok, I just sent each of you the scan data for your alt modes. Also, the dominant species on this planet is a bipedal organic one that is called, humanity, or humans."

"It took you that long to get that little bit of information?" Pandimala asked while raising an optic ridge.

Beatdrop shook his helm and said, "Primus no. I downloaded all of the local cultures songs for later use."

The other three bots then burst out into laughter. "Of course you would do that." Balm stated in-between laughs.

Beatdrop shook his helm and said, "Hey, I have to have my back up ammunition ready." He then opened the pod's door before saying, "Now, let's get out and test these forms out. Oh. One more thing. Storm and 'Mala, you two can't go into any of the local towns with your alt modes because they would look out of place and be noticed."

"Noted and appreciated." Pandimala stated with a smirk.

The four of them then got out of the pod before transforming into their alt modes. While Pandimala and Stormfire took to the skies, Balm and Beatdrop drove right underneath them. It would do them little good to separate now and get caught by surprise. They didn't know if any other bots were on this organic world and they didn't want to run into any, good or bad.

* * *

"Prime!"

Ratchet growled when he heard the agent yell. Couldn't their liaison ever just walk in quietly? Shaking his helm, Ratchet looked at the human and asked, "Do you have to yell?"

But, before he got his answer, Prime stepped forward and asked, "Yes Fowler?"

"Something fell to Earth in the early hours of this morning. It looks like some sort of pod. My superiors and I both think that it is of Cybertronian origin and want you all to check it out." Fowler huffed.

Ratchet raised an optic ridge in curiosity. Their scanners hadn't picked up the pods energy signature when they should have. It was strange. Though, the more he thought about it, the likelier the solution of it being because he was working with human technology was growing.

"Where is it located?" Optimus asked, promptly snapping him out of his thoughts.

"We had it taken to an old Air Force base so it wouldn't be disturbed." Fowler stated. Fowler then gave them the coordinates.

Once Ratchet had them typed in, he turned to Optimus as Optimus said, "Ratchet, I believe it would be wise for you to accompany us."

Ratchet nodded and said, "Of course."

"Bulkhead, stay here and man the ground bridge." Optimus ordered. He then turned to Ratchet and nodded.

Ratchet, understanding his meaning, opened the ground bridge before following Optimus, Arcee, and Bumblebee through. Once they were on the other side, Ratchet looked around for the pod. It did not take him long to find it.

"Optimus; that is an escape pod." Arcee stated.

And, she was right. The pod was too large to be anything but an escape pod. But, with the size of the pod, Ratchet was worried about how many bots could have come in it.

The four of them then approached the pod and started to look around. Ratchet walked inside, for it was large enough to allow him to, and he was shocked to see the technology. It had been so long since he had seen pure Cybertronian technology that he was stunned by it.

But, his fascination with nostalgia was soon overtaken when his optics caught sight of a symbol on the top of the pod. Ratchet had only seen the symbol once, a long time ago.

"_What symbol is that?_"

Ratchet jumped when Bumblebee asked that. His outward question, of course, caused the others to look inside as well.

"I've only seen that symbol on Cybertron. Some bots claimed that there were more factions then just us Autobots and the Decepticons fighting on Cybertron. They claimed that insignia was proof of that since they found it painted on the walls of buildings that had been found empty." Arcee stated.

Optimus nodded and said, "I too have heard these stories. But, I talked with many bots during the war and none of them had ever heard of any other factions then the Autobots and Decepticons."

But, Ratchet had. He knew that there were more factions out there. They stayed hidden and they preferred to stay that way. He had even met a couple of bots from one of the other factions. He couldn't say anything though. The bots that he had met made him swear on the Well, Matrix, Cybertron, and his own spark that he would never tell another bot about them.

"I only heard the rumors." Ratchet muttered. Hopefully, his little lie was enough.

Before anything else could be said, they all heard Bulkhead call in through the comm. link. "Uh, you bots might want to get back here now."

"What's going on Bulkhead?" Arcee asked.

"We are getting a call over the comm. system from an Autobot ship." Bulkhead answered.

"Bulkhead, send the bridge." Optimus ordered.

The four of them then got out of the pod and, as soon as they did, the ground bridge appeared. The four of them wasted no time in walking through.

* * *

It was official. Some higher being really hated him. Raf had been so excited when they had gone out into the desert to study. And, for most of the trip, they entire class had stayed together. But, now, their teacher, Mr. Barcini, had said that they were to go off in groups of five to look around for about ten minutes. Then, if they wanted to stay in the desert longer, they could, but they could go back to town after the ten minutes because school would have already gotten out.

And, of course, with his luck, he had gotten placed in a group with Vince and his 'buddies'. They were only four minutes into this separate time and Raf was already hating it.

"Keep up pipsqueak. As soon as this is done, I want to get back to town." Vince shot at him.

Raf just kept quiet and kept walking. He didn't want to rile the bully. Not while he was alone and outnumbered. But, luckily, there wasn't much time left. Hopefully, he would only have to deal with the bully's remarks and nothing else.

Glancing back up, Raf saw that the four other boys were standing at the edge of an opening. They seemed to be talking about something important because they were trying to keep him out of it.

"Hey twerp, come here."

Raf jumped when Vince talked to him. He was worried about why Vince was asking him to come over but, not wanting trouble with the bully, he walked over. "Yeah?" He asked.

"Think fast four eyes!" One of Vince's buddies suddenly yelled.

Raf had no time to realize what was going on as the boy suddenly shoved him over the edge. The fall only lasted for a couple of seconds but the impact hurt. "Ow." Raf muttered as he rubbed his arm. When he tried to glance around, he groaned when he realized that he lost his glasses.

When he heard the four boys laughing, Raf realized with horror that they were just going to leave him. "Don't leave me here!" Raf yelled after them.

But, they didn't listen and soon, to Raf's dread, the sound of their laughter was gone. Realizing that he would need his glasses, Raf slowly crawled and hoped that Vince and the others had at least thrown down his glasses. After a minute of looking, Raf let out a cry of relief when he felt his fingers brush against his glasses.

But, that happiness was soon replaced by panic when he put on his glasses. He was on a ledge in the side of a canyon. He glanced up and knew that he would not be able to climb up. Glancing around the edge, he saw that he would be able to climb down thanks to a small incline next to the ledge he was on.

"Great, I don't follow Miko and I still end up in trouble." Raf muttered to himself as he climbed down.

Once his feet hit the ground, Raf turned and had to make a decision. He could go to the right or left, and, since he had no idea where he was, he decided on right. Hopefully, his decision would be correct.

* * *

Optimus had seen that something had troubled Ratchet about the escape pod and he wanted to ask him about it. But, since they were getting a communication, he decided to wait until they got whatever it was sorted out.

Once they were through the bridge, Optimus walked up to the main console and typed in a few things before saying, "Unknown Autobot vessel, this is Autobot Outpost Omega One. Respond."

At first there was only silence. But, after about thirty nano-clicks of waiting, a voice answered back. Actually, it talked to somebot not on the line but the voice was still heard.

"Told you mechs I could find the right frequency."

"Blaster? Who all is with you?" Optimus asked, now knowing who at least one of the bots were.

"It's good to hear your voice Prime. I'm on board here with Prowl and Jazz. We've been floating around this planet's orbit for cycles trying to reach you." Blaster continued.

Optimus was glad that they were getting more backup. It would be very useful to have a communications bot again and Blaster was one of the best. Also, Prowl's battle planning skills and Jazz's spying techniques combined with both of their cyber-ninja training would help them greatly while they searched for the relics.

"We will send you landing coordinates and then pick you up via ground bridge." Optimus stated.

"Sounds like a plan O.P. Can't wait to get down there and help kick 'Con tailpipe." Optimus heard Jazz say.

Optimus then sent them landing coordinates for Egypt before saying, "We will see you soon."

"We will be landing in about five clicks. See you soon Optimus." Prowl stated before the line went dead.

"More bots coming? That's a good thing, right?" Fowler asked.

Optimus nodded and said, "Yes Agent Fowler, it is a very good thing." Optimus then glanced at Ratchet. His questioning of his CMO would have to wait until they got Prowl, Jazz, and Blaster up to date on what the situation on Earth was.

"Bumblebee, remain here. Bulkhead, Arcee, and Ratchet; you will accompany me in picking them up just in case the Decepticons have caught our communication." Optimus ordered.

The others nodded and, once Bumblebee opened the bridge, the four of them ran through. Once they were on the other side, Optimus saw that they were just in time to see the ship land. Once the engines were off and the gangplank was down, Optimus watched as the three mechs walked down the gangplank.

"The sun sure is bright here." Blaster commented as he walked up to Optimus.

Optimus nodded and said, "Indeed it is." Then once the other two were standing next to Blaster, Optimus asked, "What brought you three to Earth?"

"Well," Prowl started, "we were following the coordinates that you sent over your message at first. But, then, we were detoured when we picked up a distress signal. Deciding to help whoever it was, we flew to the coordinates of the signal. But, we were too late."

"Yeah, the ship was blown to bits." Jazz continued. "But, the ship had to be at least the size of the Nemesis. The pieces were huge and were scattered. We then picked up an escape pod's ion trail and followed it here. We were surprised that the pod ended up here where your signal told us to go. So, instead of following the pod, we decided to try and reach you all."

Blaster then cut in and asked, "Did you lot happen to find an escape pod?"

Ratchet nodded and said, "We were just there when you lot called in."

Optimus nodded in affirmation but said, "We should head back to base. There are things about this world that we need to discuss."

Optimus was surprised when Blaster said, "Already looked up the info on this planet boss bot. Since we were having trouble contacting you, I thought we had better learn some things about the planet. We already know what the dominant species is and, since you aren't on their public data bases, we figured that we would need disguises to blend in so we already got some."

Optimus nodded and said, "Then you know mostly everything. But, there are some humans who know of our existence and you will need introductions."

Bulkhead nodded and said, "Yeah. Fowler can be an aft but he's not that bad after you get to know him."

Optimus shook his helm and called for a bridge. After a click, the bridge sprang to life and he led the way through. After all the introductions were over and they were alone, he would find out what was bothering Ratchet.

* * *

**Beatdrop: Hey 'Mala, could you hide me from Authoress?**

**Pandimala: Why?**

**Beatdrop: 'Cause she wants me to download a song that isn't out yet for her.**

**Pandimala: *faceplate palms* She would. Well, the only thing I can say is run. She could be here any click.**

**Authoress: *creepily sings* I'm going to get you.**

**Beatdrop: See you 'Mala! *sprints away***

* * *

**AN: And, here is the new chapter for this story! There should be more action next chapter as well as more introductions. Also, we see that Optimus is getting suspicious of Ratchet. What does our medic know about the myth factions? Please drop a review off after reading this. Thank you! =D**


	3. A Clashing of Myths

**Disclaimer: I only own my OCs.**

* * *

**Beatdrop: Authoress, stop chasing me!**

**Authoress: *stops* Ok. All you had to do was ask.**

**Beatdrop: Really?**

**Authoress: *nods* Yeah. I torture you all enough in the stories to not listen to you here.**

**Beatdrop: Thanks Authoress.**

**Authoress: Doesn't mean you will like the next chapter.**

**Balm: Uh, that's not good.**

* * *

Ch. 2: A Clashing of Myths

Raf wasn't sure how long he had been in the canyon, but, if he had to take a guess, he would say that he had been out there for a good couple of hours. As time moved on, Raf was thinking more and more that he had taken a wrong turn. Luck just wasn't with him that day. Not only had he ended up in the situation he was in, but he had no cell service so calling Bumblebee was out of the question.

"I just want to get home." Raf muttered to himself as he walked.

Glancing up at the sky, Raf knew that there was good news and bad news. The good news was that the sun was starting to set so the heat of the day was fading away. But, that also was the bad news because the night would bring out the wild animals and he really didn't want to face any of those. Also, his chances of running into the 'Cons was growing higher by the second and he knew that he wouldn't be able to run away from them for long.

After some more time walking, probably fifteen minutes, Raf paused. He thought that he had heard something. When the sound didn't happen again after a minute, Raf pushed it off as his mind starting to melt from the heat. But, after a little more time walking, he heard it again. And, to him, it sounded like someone was talking.

"Maybe they could help me." Raf stated to himself before walking toward the voice.

Something in the back of his mind was telling him that checking out the voice was a bad idea. But, his need to get home overpowered that and so he continued to walk closer to the voices. When he turned around the corner of the canyon, though, he was starting to regret not listening to the little voice in his head.

Four Cybertronians, he was sure that they were guys, had stopped talking as soon as he arrived and were staring down at him. One looked like it could transform into some weird frog and had multiple colors. The second one looked like it could transform into a car and was mainly black with blue markings and had red optics. The third one, who was colored gray, black, and beige, looked like he could also transform into some kind of car but this bot had strange spikes on the top of his head and he had a gold visor. Plus, his armor shape and coloring made it look like he was wearing a suit. The fourth mech though, who was colored royal purple with black camouflage patterns and was the largest, looked like he could transform into a helicopter and a tank.

"Ooh, it's one of those human creatures. Can I squish it?" The frog looking one asked.

But, the black and blue bot shook his helm and said, "No, you got to squish the first organic that we found on the last planet we were on. It's my turn."

As they argued, Raf slowly backed up. Even though he saw that the symbol on their chassis was not a Decepticon one or an Autobot one, he was pretty sure that the arguing about squishing him was not a good sign. Once he was sure he was far enough to way to make a break for it. He turned and started to run.

"Hey, where are you going human? The party is just starting!" The one who looked like he was wearing a metallic suit yelled before he knelt to the ground a leaned forward, putting his shoulders parallel to the ground.

"Whoa!" Raf yelled out as a shockwave of music slammed into him and threw him to the ground. This was not a good day at all.

The one that did that walked up and smirked at him before saying, "Don't go human. The party is about to begin and you're the guest of honor."

"Don't I feel lucky." Raf muttered to himself.

The bot then reached down and went to pick him up. Raf tried to scoot away but he knew that it would do him little good.

"Why don't you pick on someone your own size Soundbite?" A voice yelled before another bot jumped down from the top of the cliff, knocking him away.

The new bot looked almost like the one it had called Soundbite except for a few things. First off, it didn't have any beige on it at all, instead, it was white in those areas. Secondly, the new bot's faceplate was white, like Knockout's, while Soundbite's was dark gray. Plus, this new mech's visor looked smoother and was colored silver. Finally, the other difference that he could see, besides another new symbol that looked like a dragon, was that the top of the mech's helm was smooth and it looked like he was wearing D.J. headphones on his head. But both mechs' chassis looked exactly alike. Actually, now that Raf looked at them, their arms looked like clones of Soundwave's, but only their arms.

"Are you ok?" The new bot asked him.

Raf hesitantly nodded and said, "Yeah."

The mech smiled at him and nodded. But, Soundbite's talking brought their attention back to him. "Beatdrop. I was hoping that you were in that escape pod that we followed. I've been meaning to get some payback from our last fight."

Beatdrop smirked and said, "What can I say Soundbite? I bring fighting to a higher level."

The big helicopter bot then walked forward and said, "You can't expect to take the four of us on by yourself Beatdrop. Especially if you are protecting the organic."

Beatdrop shook his head and said, "Well, I guess you're right."

"But, he isn't fighting you all by himself."

Raf turned around when he heard the femme voice and stared in shock. Three more Cybertronians were standing right behind them, on their level. The one on the far right was a yellow green femme who looked like she could turn into an ambulance. She looked like she was just shorter than Ratchet. On the far left, there was a white jet mech who probably stood just a little shorter then Optimus. But, in the middle, was the most impressive of all of them. The femme had to be taller than Optimus, though she might not be as tall as Megatron, and she was colored black with lime green stripes. From the looks of her, she had two alt modes; a jet and a tank.

"Pandimala, I'm so glad you could join us." The helicopter and tank mech greeted with a smirk.

The femme in the middle growled and said, "Leave here Contagion, before we have to run you out."

So, the femme with two alt modes was named Pandimala. Now, if he could figure out the other names, he could ask the bots about them later, if he got out of this alive.

"Pandimala, you never learn. We will never run from you." The black bot with blue markings said.

The other femme behind him then retorted, "Then why do I always see you run out of here first Blood Root?"

The frog mech let out a laugh and said, "That's rich, coming from you Balm. I seem to remember your Dragon Scouter friends running at the sight of me in the beginning."

Ok, so he had almost everybot's name now. All that he was missing was the frog mech's name and the white jet's name.

Raf jumped when the white jet mech let out a loud laugh before saying, "Spittor, the only reason that they ran was because they saw your ugly mug and thought it was a contagious virus that they would all catch. But, they soon learned that it was just you."

The smirk that the frog mech, Spittor, had been wearing vanished when the white jet mech said that, "Stormfire you no good fragging creation of a glitch."

Stormfire let out a chuckle and Raf could see that he was just baiting Spittor along. It was almost like he was watching a school fight instead of what could turn out to be a full blown battle. "Aw, did I hit a nerve Spittor?" Stormfire taunted.

Spittor growled and snarled, "Maybe I should put you back in your place Stormfire? And, I'll start…with your femme!"

Raf then jumped when the frog bot lunged at Balm. Stormfire let out a growl before turning his left arm into a flail and slamming it into Spittor. Of course, that move had the other bots fighting. Raf wasn't sure what to. He felt frozen in place.

"Hmm, looks like I get to squish the human after all."

Raf looked up in fear as the bot named Soundbite started to bring his pede down. He then began to run but he knew that he wouldn't outrun the falling pede.

"Whoa!" Raf yelped as he was suddenly lifted off the ground.

"Hang on there; little guy. I got you." Beatdrop stated with a smile.

Raf smiled back because he was pretty sure that these bots with the dragon symbol meant no harm.

"Hey Storm, can you take care of Soundbite for me?" Beatdrop yelled across the battlefield.

Stormfire turned to them and smiled before saying, "Sure, Spittor's out and Balm has Blood Root under control."

"Hey, I'm not a secondhand fiddle to be traded!" Soundbite yelled.

Stormfire shook his helm before running at the strange bot who tried to squish him. Raf just watched as the three others fought. It was no wonder Miko ran through the bridge. As long as you were safe, the sight was incredible.

* * *

Beatdrop glanced down at the human in his servo and smiled. He was young by the planets terms and he seemed so full of wonder as he watched the fight. Of course, when Dragon Scouters fought, it was something to see. Not a move was wasted and everything looked choreographed. When he had seen the first of his fights with the Scouters, he had asked Stormfire later if they had planned that just for him. Stormfire had told him that it was just how they were trained.

"You sure you're ok?" Beatdrop asked the human. Even though the human boy looked excited, he could tell that he was still scared.

But, the human boy nodded his head and said, "Yeah, I'm fine. I just haven't seen this kind of fighting with the bots before."

Beatdrop raised an optic ridge at that and asked, "You know other Cybertronians?" From the sounds around him, the Virons had retreated and the others were gathering around him.

The human nodded. "Yeah, some of my friends and I found out about the Autobots and they told us about the Decepticons and the war on Cybertron a while ago."

Pandimala nodded her helm. "I see, and did they tell you about any other factions during the war?"

The boy shook his head and said, "No. They didn't say a thing about other factions. Are you a part of another faction?"

Balm smiled and nodded. "Yes, but it is not surprising that your friends haven't heard of us. We tried to keep our faction and the group we are fighting about away from the other factions. It would only have complicated the war even more."

Pandimala then stepped forward. "Balm is right. Our faction, the Dragon Scouters, and the faction of the bots we were fighting, the Virons, have been fighting ever since the war on Cybertron began. While we know bots from both the Autobots and Decepticons, we have kept away in hopes of keeping our existence a secret. Though, over time, word of us leaked out. Thankfully, though, our intelligence operatives were able to make it seem like our factions were a myth." She then asked, "Are you hurt?"

The human shook his head and said, "No, I'm fine. My name's Rafael. But everyone calls me Raf. Are you the leader?"

Pandimala let out a chuckle and said, "You are very perceptive. Yes, I am the leader of the Dragon Scouters. Now Raf, I must ask you a favor."

Raf looked confused and asked, "What do you need?"

"I want you to promise me not to tell your friends about any of our existence, both Dragon Scouter and Viron. If they found out about us now, it could spell catastrophe for all of us. Now I know we won't be able to hide our existence for very much longer but I want you to keep our secret until after we reveal ourselves. Please?" Pandimala asked.

Beatdrop couldn't help but smile when Raf gave a determined nod and said, "I promise. I've kept the Autobots a secret from the humans so I can keep you all a secret from the bots."

Pandimala smiled. "Thank you Raf. Now, I think that we need to get you back home."

But, Beatdrop was confused when Raf shook his head. "Momma's working tonight. I'm staying at my friend Jack's house. Both his mom and him know about the Autobots."

Pandimala nodded but Beatdrop could see the contemplative look on her faceplate. He knew that they had to get Raf home in a way that wouldn't look suspicious.

"Hey Raf," Balm started.

"Yeah Balm?" Raf asked. He must have picked up their names from the fight.

"How did you end up alone out here in the first place?" Balm asked.

Raf told them and Beatdrop felt anger at the older boys who had left him. From the research he had done on the planet, being out alone in the desert was dangerous. How could they have left someone younger than them out alone to defend for himself?

But, that did give him an idea. "Hey, I think I may have a way of getting Raf here to his friend's house without anyone, or bot, noticing that something is wrong."

"What is that Beatdrop?" Pandimala asked him with a knowing look.

Beatdrop raised the servo that Raf wasn't sitting in and said, "Now 'Mala, don't give me that look. This is a good idea that should work."

Balm shook her helm and said, "You said that about the idea you had on Thanagar. Look what happened there. I spent twenty solar cycles taking out those dents the locals gave us."

"Are you bots ever going to drop that?" He asked.

"No." All three said.

Beatdrop sighed and said, "Well, just listen and I think you will all agree that it is a good idea."

The other three then walked close and Beatdrop whispered his idea to them. Luckily, they agreed and so they went about putting their plan into motion.

* * *

June Darby paced nervously in her front room. Rafael was supposed to have gotten back from his trip hours ago. It was now turning dark out and she was starting to wonder about bringing the authorities in on his disappearance. But, she knew that the Autobots were working hard on looking for Raf but they had no idea where to start around Jasper so they were back at their base, looking to see if they could find his cell phone. She was praying that he hadn't been caught by the Decepticons. They were bad news.

She jumped in surprise when she heard the doorbell ring. Most everyone in town knew that they could come in so the person must either be new or from out of town. Either way, she was curious as to what they could want from her so she walked over to the door and opened it. What she saw shocked her.

"Raf, are you ok?" June asked in shock.

Standing in the doorway were two girls and two boys. All of them looked to be around nineteen and the taller of the boys, who had blonde hair and green eyes, was holding Raf, wrapped up in a blanket but conscious.

"Yeah, I'm fine Mrs. Darby." Raf said tiredly.

June then realized that she was making them stand outside so she motioned to her living room and said, "Please, come in. You can set Raf on the couch."

The four of them looked hesitant. But, when the taller of the two girls nodded, the others nodded as well. "Thank you. You must be June. Raf said that he was supposed to stay here tonight." The tallest girl said.

June nodded and led them to the living room. Once the taller boy had put Raf on the couch, the four of them sat in some seats. "So, what are your names?" June asked.

The taller of the two boys answered first. "My name is Matt Night." He then motioned to the shorter of the two girls, who had medium length red hair and the same color green eyes as Matt. "This is my girlfriend, Alice Loveadiast."

The shorter of the two boys had black hair but, curiously, also had a white line down the middle, as well as almost silver eyes. He smiled and said, "The names Britton Wilucki. Nice to meet you Mrs. Darby."

The final girl, who had golden brown hair and the same color green eyes as Matt and Alice, smiled. "And my name is Lizzie Val."

"How did you all find Raf?" June asked. She found it strange that these four kids, probably just out of high school, had happened to find Raf.

Lizzie was the one to answer her question. "Well, the four of us wanted to take one last trip together before we start college next year. We took a year off to make sure we knew that we wanted to go to college. So, back to what I was saying, Britton here had the idea of coming down here. He loves music and is always trying to find new ways to play with the sound and how we hear it. So, we have been traveling all over Nevada so he could play with his music. Today though, we were just picking up his equipment when Raf here stumbled onto our path. He walked up to us and asked us if we could help him. Naturally, we asked what happened."

"And what did happen to him?" June asked, now curious as to what had happened as well.

The boy, Britton, told her what Raf had told him and June was furious. How could those older boys leave him out there? What if he had broken his glasses during his fall? They definitely should have known better and she knew that she would be making a few calls after she called the base.

"Well, I am so glad that he is safe." June stated. "Thank you for bringing him home safe. Is there anything I can do for you?"

The four shook their heads. Lizzie then said, "No thank you. We were just glad to help. But, we have to get going now. We have a small drive to our campsite."

June stood up with the four and walked them to the door. Once they were outside, June said, "Thank you again for bringing Raf home. I hope you have a good night."

The one named Britton smiled at her and said, "So do I and you're welcome." She then watched as they got a black, gray, and white car. While she didn't know much about cars, she had seen enough commercials to know that it was the new 2014 Aston Martin Vanquish. How the four of them could afford that, she probably wouldn't know.

After the four drove away, June walked back inside. She had to make another phone call to the base. Hopefully, they would pick up.

* * *

Optimus could tell that everyone was tense. With Rafael's disappearance, everyone was thinking that the worst had happened. Of course, he couldn't blame them. He was thinking those things as well They all had to be prepared just in case the Decepticons did capture Raf and were waiting until the time was right to use them.

Also, he had yet to have time to discuss the escape pod with Ratchet. He and Ratchet had been friends for many stellar cycles and he thought that they had almost no secrets between them. But, he was starting to think that he might have been wrong.

An alarm going off tempted him to faceplate palm himself. This was the seventh time that June had called to ask if they had anything. While he understood that she would worry about Rafael, he also knew that they needed to be able to work without all of the constant distractions.

"Hey boss bot. Jack's ma is calling in. Should I let it through?" Blaster asked.

Optimus thought about it for a click before nodding and saying, "I believe that would be wise."

"Yeah, otherwise, she'll call all night trying to get through." Miko added.

Blaster smirked and nodded before typing a few things into the console that he was working at. After a few minutes, they all heard June Darby's voice. "Hello, is anyone there?"

"Mrs. Darby, we will inform you as soon as we have any information on Rafael. Until then, we need you to keep this line clear." Optimus stated.

"Optimus, that's why I'm calling. About fifteen minutes ago, a group of four young adults came up to the door and they had Raf." June stated, to the shock of them all.

"Did they say how they found him? And is he alright?" Optimus asked.

As he listened to June recount the tale, Optimus found himself saddened by what had happened. Rafael must have been scared and alone for a while and they had not known about it. Plus, he found himself wondering how those boys could have left Rafael out there alone, knowing the dangers of the desert.

Once June finished telling the story, she said, "Optimus, I think we can count ourselves lucky. We are lucky that those four found him instead of the Decepticons. That could have been disastrous."

Optimus nodded and said, "You are right Mrs. Darby. Thank you for calling." He then cut the line.

"Optimus, something seems off about their story." Prowl stated.

Optimus turned to his tactician and asked, "What do you mean?"

Prowl paced a little before saying, "They claim they came down here to use the canyon acoustics with their audio. But, there are plenty of canyons around that would serve their purpose much better and yet they chose that one? I don't think it is a coincidence."

"Duly noted Prowl." Optimus stated. He then turned and went to retire for the night. He was feeling tired and did not want to confront Ratchet about his behavior until he was at full capacity.

* * *

**Beatdrop: You had to bring in Soundbite? He is like an evil twin who isn't related! How could you Authoress?**

**Authoress: Well, I had to have an enemy for you to fight. Especially with what I have planned for later chapters.**

**Balm: Yeah. Trust me Beatdrop. I don't like Spittor being here any better then you like Soundbite being here.**

**Pandimala: And I feel the same for Contagion.**

**Authoress: Well, plans are going to be great in the future for this. *rubs hands together with evil look on face***

**Three bots: *gulp in fear***

* * *

**AN: And here is yet another chapter! I hope you all liked this. Poor Raf. Not only does he have to keep the Autobot secret, he now has to keep the Dragon Scouters a secret from the 'Bots. I wonder how long that will last? Prowl seems suspicious of the four humans who found Raf. I wonder if he is right? *winks* Well, anyways, I hope you all liked. Next chapter probably won't be up until Friday or Saturday depending on how much time I have to type. Until then though, please leave a review for this and say what you feel about this story. Until next time! *runs off to terrorize OCs***


	4. Secrets Hurt

**Disclaimer: I only own my OCs.**

* * *

**Beatdrop: *hears music* What is that?**

**Pandimala: Oh great, she is in one of her moods.**

**Beatdrop: What 'moods'?**

**Authoress: *sings* The prophesy was clear, the wind would bring you here!**

**Beatdrop: I like her mood.**

**Authoress: *stops singing* *stares at Beatdrop mournfully* *walks away***

**Beatdrop: *gulps* What was that look?**

**Pandimala: I'm out of here! *speeds away from room***

**Beatdrop: This...isn't good.**

* * *

**AN: I AM SO SORRY! I meant to post this Friday (even got everything on the site) when I lost internet! I've been trying for days to get it to work and my parents had to get a new router thingy to make it work so here it is!**

* * *

Ch. 3: Secrets Hurt

The halls of the Nemesis were eerily quiet. Well, except for in a certain med bay. The sound of a polisher resounded off of the walls. Inside the med bay, a familiar red medic had his buffer in servo.

"Scrap Starscream to the pit for this." Knockout growled as he continued to buff out the deep scratch that his 'commander' had given to him. He just went out for a drive, and ended up in a race. Lord Megatron hadn't cared that he did, since it was during his off time. But, Starscream had taken things differently once Megatron and Soundwave had left the room.

Starscream had 'asked' him to stay around the ship to make sure he could be fixed. But, he had left to go racing and Starscream had foolishly messed with the Insecticons. While he despised their presence there, he knew that messing with them was not the smartest idea. Starscream, though, was a fool and had called them idiotic beasts. The group of Insecticons around him had taken, extreme measures to teach commander Starscream that they weren't as idiotic as they looked.

Starscream had been very upset to learn that he was out racing and took it out on his poor, defenseless, finish. With Breakdown, gone, the buffing process was much harder than it used to be.

_Knockout, hold still._

Knockout shook the voice out of his helm. He did not need to be reliving in the past. The owner of that voice had been offline ever since the war on Cybertron had first began. The owner of the voice had always helped him when he needed a buff, though he was much less cooperative than the bot had wanted.

Flashback:

"_Knockout, hold still." The femme voice stated._

"_I'm trying but you are going too hard." Knockout complained as the bot continued to work._

_The femme let off a scoff. "Maybe it would teach you to stop going to those races. They are starting to get more deadly. Ever since that mech Megatron has been preaching, the more psychotic Cybertronians have crawled out of their pits. They keep hoping that a war will come."_

"_But maybe war is what we need. The council doesn't seem any closer to helping the lower classes than it did before." Knockout responded._

_The femme shook her helm and said, "What about the consequences of war Knockout? Do you think that the council will sit idly by and let Megatron overrun them if it comes to that?"_

_Knockout knew that they wouldn't. "Don't you care about equality in the classes?"_

_The femme turned off the buffer. She then stared into his optics. "Of course I want equality. But, I do not want to risk my home world for it. You and I both know that neither the council nor Megatron would surrender. It would be a massacre." The femme then turned back on the buffer and continued working._

_Knockout was quiet for a few clicks. "But, if a war did come, what side would you choose?" He had been thinking on this subject ever since Megatron had started talking about equality. He then flinched when the buffer went across a deeper scratch._

"_Stop fidgeting." The femme ordered before sighing. "Honestly Knockout, I would stay neutral until I could find a way to avoid either side. You know that there are always more than two sides that fight in a war. Maybe I'll join one of them if they just wish to protect our home world."_

_Knockout shook his helm and, after the femme finished buffing him, said, "Thanks for the buff."_

_The femme smiled back at him and said, "Don't mention it Knockout."_

End of Flashback

Knockout sighed as he remembered that solar cycle. It was not long after that when Megatron launched his attack. It had not taken him long to join their ranks. To his grief, though, he soon found out that the femme in the memory he just relived had been offlined in a bombing of a city by both Decepticons and Autobots. That was one of the few solar cycles that he remembered when he had regretted his choice of faction.

But, that was the past and nothing could change the fact that the femme was offline and he was a Decepticon, through and through. He then shook himself out of his thoughts as he heard Starscream screeching in the halls. Great, the seeker had gotten on somebot's bad side, again.

* * *

Pandimala sighed as she glanced around their new base. After they had returned Raf home, she had asked Beatdrop to find them a base. It had not taken him long to find an abandoned human facility that was underneath the ground. She was glad that it was underground because, thanks to Raf, she now knew that all four factions were on Earth and she knew that they would be attacked by at least two of them. She had to protect her troops. It was one of her many duties, a duty that she had yet to fail.

"Pandimala, the inter-communications network has been put up." Beatdrop stated, snapping her out of her thoughts.

Pandimala smiled and nodded. "Thank you Beatdrop. Is it able to scramble our location signal in case we have to make contact with the Decepticons or the Virons?"

To her relief, Beatdrop nodded and said, "What kind of communications mech would I be if I didn't put one in? Remcy would have a spark attack if I did."

She let out a chuckle. "He definitely would. But, now I need to figure out just what Autobots and Decepticons are here on Earth. It would be too risky to try and contact Raf for the information. The Autobots could be keeping track of his calls and I don't want them to discover us just yet." She wanted to know if Optimus and Megatron were on the planet as well. If they were, she knew that it might make their situation a little easier. Optimus would be able to control any of the hot helmed bots under his authority if they tried to attack them.

But, there was a downside to that. If Megatron was here, then there would be order in the Decepticon ranks, to a point, and that would make it harder to take them down if they had too. While normally, she wouldn't mind, there were only four Scouters and an unknown amount of Autobots versus another unknown amount of enemies.

"Well," Beatdrop started, pulling her out of her thoughts, "I could go out on patrol and see if I can't run into them on accident. If I might be compromised, I can hide my insignia."

Pandimala smiled. She had forgotten that Beatdrop could hide his insignia. At first, everybot had been worried about him when he had joined specifically because of that. But, they had learned to trust him and now he was one of their most trusted spies.

"That is an excellent idea Beatdrop. I would try around the outskirts of Jasper, and then expand your circle until you run into someone. The rest of us will be heading to the further distances of this planet to see if we can find any untapped energon. We are going to need some soon." Pandimala stated.

"So, you are saying that I won't have much in the way of backup?" Beatdrop asked.

Pandimala nodded. "Unfortunately, yes. You know that I hate splitting us up but we are in desperate need of information and energon. If you find some energon, though, call in so we can all regroup."

Beatdrop smiled and transformed before saying, "I'll be as safe as I can 'Mala. See you later."

Pandimala smiled softly as he drove off. "Primus, keep him safe and my sanity intact. I fear both are in danger." She then walked outside and transformed into her jet mode before jetting it out of there. She had to go somewhere called Egypt and it was a long flight.

* * *

Raf smiled when 'Bee arrived at the Darby place. Since it was Saturday, he was allowed to go straight to the base. He was really happy to be going back. His, adventure, the other day had really shaken him up. But, hopefully, he wouldn't have to meet those Virons ever again. Though he wouldn't mind meeting up with the Dragon Scouters again. They seemed like a nice group of bots. Their niceness was the only reason why he was going to keep his word and keep their secret, even from the Autobots.

"_Hey Raf._" Bumblebee beeped as Raf got in.

Raf smiled. "Hey 'Bee. What did I miss yesterday?"

Bumblebee let out a few laughs before saying, "_Well, we did have three more bots come to base."_

Raf stared ahead in shock before saying, "No way!"

Bumblebee laughed some more and said, "_Yes way. Their names are Prowl, Jazz, and Blaster. Prowl's usually pretty serious but he can outsmart almost any 'Con. Jazz is a really laid back kind of bot. But, he could take out any 'Con if he wants to. And Baster, well, he and Miko will get along well."_

"Why?" Raf asked. He couldn't picture any bot like Miko. Though, now that he thought about it, Beatdrop was pretty close.

"_Well, because they both like loud music. Ratchet is already ready to weld Blaster to the ceiling." _Bumblebee stated before he entered the base.

Now Raf couldn't wait to meet the new bots. It seemed that he was getting to meet a new bot every day. Though, as he remembered the Virons, there were some that he would like to forget about. He shivered as he remembered that they had started to fight about who was going to squish him.

"_You cold Raf?" _Bumblebee asked in concern.

Raf shook his head. "Nah 'Bee. I'm just excited to be able to meet these new bots."

Bumblebee then pulled to a stop and Raf excitedly got out. When he glanced around though, he felt nervous when he saw that everyone was staring at him, including the three new bots. "Hey everyone." Raf greeted sheepishly.

Optimus gave a small smile. "Hello Rafael. This is Prowl, Jazz, and Blaster and they will be a part of this team."

Raf waved at them. When they all then turned away, Raf walked up to the upper platform and sat on the couch. But, before he could grab the remote, Miko was upon him.

"Raf! Glad your back. Jack has been all boring and we missed you." Miko stated quickly while holding him in a bear hug that would kill a bear.

"Miko…can't…breath." Raf wheezed out.

She immediately dropped him. "Oops. Sorry Raf. Anyways, did you see anything interesting out there?"

Ok, here was his first test to see if he could keep their secret. Slowly shaking his head, he said, "No. Nothing that I remember anyways."

Miko stared at him for the longest time and, for a minute, he thought that she had seen that he was lying. He was about to make up another excuse when she said, "Oh well. At least those people found you. Though who would want to come near Jasper of all places for their final trip?" She then walked over to Bulkhead.

Raf sighed. He had passed that test. Though, he still had to see if he could fool the 'Bots. But, until that time came, he was going to keep his quiet unless asked to speak. There was no reason that he needed to get the information out from a quick word.

* * *

Beatdrop let out a laugh as his wheels drifted across the sand. While he was heading out to try and find the Autobots and Decepticons, he had found this perfect patch of sand that would be great for drifting. It was only going to be for a few clicks and then he was going to get back to being serious. Well, as serious as he got anyways.

"Hmm, strange." Beatdrop whispered to himself as he came to a stop. An energon signal had appeared on his radar and was moving closer and closer. He knew that meant that there was either raining energon or that there was a bot coming toward him who was hurt. Energon signals wouldn't normally be able to be detected.

The sound of an engine had him becoming on edge. If it was an Autobot or Decepticon, he had to find cover, and quickly. But, if it was a Viron, he would prefer to be in the open so he would have more room to fight and not risk the chance of being cornered.

The sight of a black, gray, and beige car that looked exactly like his alt mode had Beatdrop growling. Unless some humans had a car with his exact shape and how his chassis was colored, then the car coming toward him was no car; especially when it transformed.

"Well well well; I go out for a nice, relaxing drive and I run into you Beatdrop. Primus must be looking down on me today. I get to snuff your spark and I got a nice sunny ride. Can't beat that." Soundbite stated with a smirk.

Beatdrop transformed and got into a defensive position before saying, "I can match any beat of yours Soundbite. I will be able to beat them once I rip that helm of yours off you chassis."

Soundbite let out a tutting sound and said, "Beatdrop. Your tone sounds so off. Let my music remind you just how off tune you are."

Beatdrop barely got a heavy base song up and out in time as Soundbite launched his music blast. The two blasts met with each other and they canceled each other out. Beatdrop then let out his tentacles as Soundbite took out his sword. The sword had a beige blade and was slightly curved at the top.

"You might want to rethink your genre Soundbite. I have enough songs in my systems to put you to shame." Beatdrop growled.

Soundbite shrugged and said, "While that may or may not be true, it is time for me to bring upon our cadence. With me stronger of course."

It took Beatdrop a few nano-clicks to realize what Soundbite was implying. But, as he found out as he turned around, he was too late.

A gasp escaped Beatdrop's vocals as a large black fist slammed into his side and threw him to the side. Seeing Blood Root standing there, Beatdrop knew that he was going to need backup. So, he reached his servo up to activate his comm. link.

"Frag!" Beatdrop yelled out as a familiar tongue wrapped around his wrist and started to pull him toward its origin. Of course, Spittor had the largest smirk on his faceplates as he brought his tongue back.

"Let me go you frag helms!" Beatdrop yelled out. He was in a panic. He was now cornered and in need of backup, except he couldn't call for backup because his servo was restrained. "I'm such an idiot." Beatdrop muttered to himself. He had forgotten about his other servo. Reaching up to his helm, he was again about to open his comm. link but he froze just inches away.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you Beatdrop." Contagion's voice whispered behind him. He must have crept up when he was struggling.

Beatdrop lowered his servo slowly away from his helm. While he normally wouldn't give a jig about what Contagion said, the warm metal of Contagion's charged blaster against his helm was enough incentive to listen to the Viron leader.

"What do you want?" Beatdrop asked. He then went to turn around but the pressure increasing from the barrel to his helm caused him to freeze.

"You'll find out very soon." Contagion laughed.

Beatdrop did not like the sound of that. He was worried that he might not make it out of the situation he was in online.

"What are we waiting for Contagion?" Blood Root asked when he was placed in the middle of them all.

There was a pause before Contagion said, "Nothing."

Beatdrop then let out a scream of pain as he felt something sharp go through his side. Since he couldn't move, had had to settle with glancing to his side and to his horror, he saw Soundbite's blade imbedded in his side.

"Looks like it is final curtain for you Beatdrop." Soundbite whispered. Beatdrop could feel the smirk on Soundbite's faceplate as he said that.

Another gasp came out of Beatdrop's vocals when the blade was immediately taken out, the curved part causing even more damage as it came out. That was followed by grunts of pain as the other three Virons slammed their fists into his side, almost simultaneously, and he could feel the metal bending.

When the finally stopped and let go of him, Beatdrop fell to the ground in numb pain. He knew that the pain should be there, but he couldn't feel it. Also, the puddle of energon underneath him seemed too small. That's when he realized why they had punched him. If any other bot did find him, they would just think he was low on energon because their punching folded over his armor over the hole so it was leaking out less, but the energon loss would still be the same.

The sound of a transformation sequence had him forcing his numbing helm up and he saw that all of the Virons had transformed into their root modes. As they drove away, Beatdrop could hear the sound of Soundbite's laughter ringing in his audio receptors.

Beatdrop unsteadily rose from where he had fallen and stumbled toward the canyon wall. He needed to use it as support so he could try and contact Pandimala and the others. He needed medical attention and fast. It took him a click, but he finally managed to lean against the wall. Trying to raise his servo to his helm, Beatdrop sadly realized that he could not find the energy to reach it.

When his vision flickered, Beatdrop realized that he was going to fall into stasis lock soon. He knew that he had to hide his insignia before he did. Otherwise, he would get 'Mala mad at him. And, while it would take a lot of energy for him to do it, it was a lot easier then facing Pandimala's wrath at him not hiding it. They had worked so hard to keep themselves a secret and he couldn't ruin that.

Concentrating on his insignia, Beatdrop put a picture of it disappearing in his processor. When he felt a wave of fatigue wash over him, he knew that it had worked. But, to make sure, Beatdrop glanced at where his insignia normally was and smiled when he saw that it was gone. That was the last thing that he saw before he felt his back hit the canyon wall and the same back scrape against the wall as he fell to a sitting position and into stasis lock.

* * *

**All bots: *stare in shock***

**Authoress: *whistles a solemn tune while walking away***

* * *

**AN: MUHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! I left you on a cliffhanger! I wonder what is going to happen next? And will Raf be able to keep the secret? What is going to happen to Beatdrop? Will the other Dragon Scouters get to him in time or will somebot, or someone, else find him first? I hope you all liked this chapter. That little review button gives me inspiration when others use it so please hit it and give me your guesses for anything in the story or just any ideas that you have for the story. Who knows? I might use them. If I do, I will give credit where due. Until next time, I will walk along the line of life and death for my OC. *walks in straight line away*.**


	5. Into the Unknown

**Disclaimer: I only own my OCs.**

* * *

**Beatdrop: Ok, what is with the gray lights?**

**Authoress: It is me determining what I am going to do with you.**

**Beatdrop: What do you mean?**

**Authoress: Well, I could have you offline but then I might not.**

* * *

Ch. 4: Into the Unknown

Optimus glanced over at the human platform in curiosity. Rafael seemed to be very nervous about something but he wasn't sure exactly what it was. Maybe it was from his time in the desert alone. He knew that being alone at such a young age in a place that could potentially be dangerous can be very frightening. Raf would have been even more scared because of the threat of the Decepticons finding him.

Deciding to not question Rafael just yet, Optimus turned his gaze around the room. But, looking over at his medic reminded him of said medic's reaction at the escape pod they had found and that was currently being kept in one of their vaults for further study. To him, Ratchet seemed, scared and shocked by the symbol that was in the pod. It was almost like he knew it from somewhere.

"Optimus, can I have a word with you?" Prowl asked.

It looked like his talk with Ratchet was going to have to wait. "Yes." Optimus answered.

Prowl then led him into one of the hallways before saying, "I have doubts that the children are going to be much help to us. They seem to be a tactical disadvantage."

Optimus shook his helm, mentally of course. He figured that Prowl would say this sooner or later. But, on the outside, he said with a neutral faceplate, "Prowl, while they do have their weaknesses, they also have their strengths. Give them time and they will show you and they will."

Prowl nodded. "I understand sir. But, that is not the only reason I wish to speak with you. I am concerned about whatever was in that escape pod. We do not know who or what was in it and I don't think we have the resources to find out the hard way."

Optimus nodded. That had been another of the many things that were on his processor. They still had no idea what had come in that escape pod. The only thing that they did know about it was that it was ejected from a ship that has since been destroyed and that it contained the mark of a faction that is a battlefield myth. "I too am worried about it Prowl. We have no way of knowing if the pod contained an enemy or a friend and we have no idea where they went. I am not sure what we are going to do about it."

An alarm going off stopped him from saying anything else and the two of them made their way back to the main room. "What is going on?" Optimus asked.

Blaster turned to them and said, "Our scanners have just picked up an energon signal."

Optimus studied the signal and, to his confusion, saw that it was growing smaller. "This signal, is growing smaller."

Ratchet nodded. "We noticed this too."

"Could it be another Cybertronian?" Everyone in the room then turned to Rafael when he said that. Optimus wondered what he was getting at. "I mean, when we found Starscream's energon signature, it was weakening because he was losing energon. Couldn't that be the case again?"

Optimus knew that it could very well be the case. And, since they hadn't received a call for help from the seeker, it could be the, or at least one, of the occupants of the escape pod. "Good thinking Rafael." He then turned to Ratchet and said, "Ratchet, I want you, Blaster, Bulkhead, and Arcee to investigate the signal. Report back in to us once you find out what it is."

Ratchet nodded and the four of them walked over to the bridge. Not much later, Optimus watched the portal open and watched as the four bots ran through. Once the bridge closed, he turned to Prowl and saw that he was worried. Of course, he was too. They had no idea what they were about to get into.

* * *

Ratchet felt relief as he ran through the other side of the bridge. He had seen Optimus' looks at him ever since they had found the escape pod. He knew that he was hiding something. But, what that something was would hopefully not reach Optimus until it was time. He didn't want to break his word since he had sworn on his spark. Ratchet had a feeling that the group that made him promise not to tell would actually take his spark if he told.

When they all walked into the open desert area, Ratchet could see that some sort of skirmish had happened and, more than likely, it wasn't between humans. The sand was thrown around in giant mounds and it was pretty simple to see where one bot had at least been knocked down.

"Hey guys, look at this." Bulkhead stated from where he was standing.

The three of them walked over to Bulkhead and he felt his optics widen slightly at the size of the energon puddle that was there. The bot, if they was still online, would be critical from that amount of loss. They had to find the bot, and quickly. But, when he looked around for an energon trail, he was shocked when he couldn't find one. Maybe some bot had been nearby to fix him or maybe he was taken a prisoner somewhere.

"We need to look around and see if the bot is still here. If they are, they could be critical and need immediate medical attention." Ratchet stated.

The others nodded and they all started to look around. Ratchet figured that, if the bot was still around, that he wouldn't have gotten too far after losing that much energon. But, the bot would have tried to find a place that might support them. The bot hadn't been in the canyon that they had come through so Ratchet started to look at the walls surrounding them. On his first glance, he didn't see a thing. But, on his second glance around, he paused. Something seemed off about a certain section. It was jetting out at the bottom and, while he didn't know much about Earth's canyon structure, he was pretty sure it didn't do that. Walking up to the area, it didn't take him long to see that it was definitely not a part of the canyon.

"Bulkhead, Blaster, Arcee; over here now!" Ratchet yelled as he ran to the bot. When he got to the bot, he saw that he was very weak. Taking a scan of the bot, Ratchet saw that the mech was in stasis lock and very low on energon. But, he couldn't find a wound and that was strange. How did that pile of energon end up on the other side in the first place?

"Ratchet, is he online?" Blaster asked.

Ratchet nodded and said, "Barely. Bulkhead, carry him back to base." Ratchet then activated his comm. link and said, "Ratchet to base. We need a ground bridge and quickly. We found a mech who is close to offlining and we need to get him to med bay stat."

"Ground bridge coming Ratchet." Ratchet heard Optimus answer.

It did not take long after for the bridge to open. Once it did, Ratchet ran through with the others close behind. Once he was on the other side, Ratchet wasted no time in running to the med bay and opening the doors for Bulkhead. "Quickly, get him inside." Ratchet stated as he got everything ready that he needed.

As soon as Bulkhead put the mech on the med berth, he stepped back and Ratchet began feeding tubes into the mech's energon lines. If they got the energon into his systems quick enough, they could possibly save him. As the energon fed into the mech, Ratchet looked over the mech for a faction insignia. But, after an extensive look, he couldn't find any. That was highly unusual for a Cybertronian of this time. Everybot that he had ever met had been of either Autobot or Decepticon factions...well, except for those other factions that he had briefly met but he didn't see their insignia either.

What he did find, though, was a strange weld mark. It was on the mech's side and it looked like it was almost beaten into place. Why it was there, he couldn't tell. Nothing seemed wrong with that area. But, he figured that he could try and fix it. The mech would probably appreciate it.

"Wait."

Ratchet jumped when the mech on the table spoke. He was supposed to be out for at least another five cycles. But, Ratchet could see that his silver visor was lit and was looking straight at him.

"Why? I was just fixing this welding job." Ratchet asked.

From the flickering of the mech's visor, he was fighting to stay awake. But, for what reason he wasn't sure.

"Not...a...weld...mark." The mech forced out.

Ratchet raised an optic ridge in confusion. "What do you mean?"

The mech was slightly shaking from the strain on his systems and, normally, Ratchet would have forced him into stasis with his condition. But, the mech was trying to tell him something. Something about the strange weld mark that, according to the mech, wasn't a weld mark.

"Attacked. Enemies...covered...up...wound. Meant...so if...found...I would...still...offline. Wound...is deep. Losing energon." The mech strangled out before Ratchet watched his visor offline again.

Confused by the mech's words, Ratchet scanned the bot and, to his shock, the energon was leaving him at an alarming rate. He then looked at the weld area, that was supposedly a covered up wound, and was shocked to see that the indents matched the size of Cybertronian knuckles perfectly.

Grabbing the laser scalpel, Ratchet slowly peeled back the layers of metal and, once he was done, he stared in shock at the hole that he found. It went close to halfway through his chassis, though how it missed the vital organs would confuse him forever. What he needed to do was to get to work. So, taking extreme care, Ratchet began work on repairing the mech.

* * *

Beatdrop groaned. His side was killing him and he couldn't see a thing. Of course, after running a small diagnostic, he found that the only reason that he couldn't see was because he hadn't onlined his visor yet. But the pain in his side was still a mystery. Onlining his visor, Beatdrop glanced around and became confused. This was not the Dragon Scouter med bay. When he saw an Autobot symbol, he remembered vaguely waking up and telling the bot that was working on him about his stab wound. Glancing down at said wound, Beatdrop relaxed when he saw that it was healed correctly.

"How are you feeling?"

Beatdrop jumped at the sound of the mech voice and attempted to sit up. "Who's there?"

A soft servo on his shoulder had him laying back down and he looked up to see the bot that had worked on him. "I didn't mean for you to have to sit up. How are you feeling?"

Beatdrop ran another diagnostic scan, he said, "I seem to be fine. Feeling a little weak but I should be able to get back to full strength soon. Thanks doc."

The medic nodded. "You are welcome. Now, are you ready for other bots to be in here?"

Beatdrop nodded and said, "I guess I have some questions to answer, don't I? What's your name doc?"

The medic nodded and said, "Yes, you do. And my name is Ratchet."

Beatdrop kept a calm face but his processor was going a mile a minute. He had heard that name before but he couldn't remember where.

The doors opening had him going quiet and he was surprised to see a large red and blue semi mech walking in. There was only one bot that could be in front of him.

"Hello. What is your name?" Optimus Prime, leader of the Autobots, asked.

"The name's Beatdrop." Beatdrop answered.

"I am Optimus Prime, leader of the Autobots. Why don't you have a faction?" Optimus questioned.

Beatdrop knew that he would have to be careful with how he answered that. "I didn't want to jump into a loyalty helm first and find out later that I had chosen wrong. By the time that I was close to choosing, Cybertron died and everyone fled. I fled and ended up here."

"Did you come here recently?" Optimus asked.

They must have found the pod. Shaking his helm, Beatdrop lied, "Nah, I've been here for about four stellar cycles. I was just out for a cruise when something hit me. I transformed and I felt something stab me. Didn't see who it was, but I felt them punch the metal over the stab wound closed. I guess they wanted it to look like I had offlined from lack of energon. Thanks for fixing me up." Well, the first part was a lie at least. The reason and the thanks were true.

Optimus seemed to study him for a click. "I see. Well, if you wish it, we can offer you sanctuary for as long as you need."

Beatdrop smiled and said, "Thanks. But, I don't think I'll be out of this med bay until tomorrow."

Beatdrop was slightly disturbed when Optimus simply nodded and left. Did that bot not like emotions or what? No wonder 'Mala kept herself from these other leaders. They were so...serious. Not saying that 'Mala wouldn't be serious when she needed to, but she knew that there were times where you were allowed to crack a smile.

A wave of exhaustion going over his systems had him letting out a sigh. He needed to get some actual recharge. So, starting his shutdown sequences, he offlined his visor. Before he went into recharge though, he wondered how the next solar cycle would go.

* * *

Blaster waited with learned patience as Optimus went inside and talked to the mech. From what he had seen of the bot, it had looked like was a loner. He had been a loner, before he ran into Prowl and Jazz again. It had been a terrible way to live and he wondered how the bot had survived it for the many stellar cycles that did.

When Optimus walked out of the med bay and closed the door, the rest of them walked up to him. "Optimus, what did he say?" Blaster asked.

"He says that his name is Beatdrop and that he is a neutral because he didn't want to make a wrong choice." Optimus answered.

"How did he get injured?" Prowl asked.

Blaster was curious about this as well. "He says that he was ambushed but didn't see who it was." Optimus answered them. "He seemed tired so I left him to rest. I think he is going to be a great ally."

"If he isn't a spy of course." Prowl added. Leave it to Prowl to find the negative of the situation.

"He does not seem like a spy. But, I will have him confined to base to be on the safe side. We do not need another infiltration incident. Once he is awake and feeling well, I will allow him access to the base." Optimus stated.

"What about the kids?" Arcee asked.

Optimus seemed to think about that and said, "As long as one of us is in the room, it should not be an issue. We will see how he reacts to the children and go along from there." He then walked out of the room, Prowl following close behind.

Since it was late, Blaster said his goodnights and went to his room. Once he was there, he laid down and closed his optics. The bots name had sounded awfully familiar but he wasn't sure where he had heard it before. Shrugging his shoulders, Blaster shut down his systems and fell into recharge.

* * *

**Beatdrop: I LIVE!**

**Authoress: You're welcome Beatdrop.**

**Beatdrop: I can still feel my beat going strong.**

**Authoress: Well, we are going to have a lot of fun in the future.**

* * *

**AN: And, here is the next chapter of this story! Aren't I nice? I let Beatdrop stay in the land of the living. Next chapter is going to have Beatdrop meeting the humans...wonder how Raf is going to react? Well, you will find out soon. Some news now! I have decided that this will be the only story of mine that I will work on until it catches up, chapter wise, to Resurrection of a Journey. Then, those two will be updated together. Until next time though, please review. =D**


	6. All for One

**Disclaimer: I only own my OCs.**

* * *

**Pandimala: Authoress, what is happening to Beatdrop?**

**Authoress: I don't know Pandimala. Your guess is as good as mine.**

**Balm: But you don't need to guess.**

**Authoress: Yes I do. I am making this up as I go along and you know it.**

**Stormfire: She has a point.**

* * *

Ch. 5: All for One

Raf knew that something was up when he only saw Bumblebee at the school parking lot after school. The others were almost always there to pick up Miko and Jack. But, something must have happened so that Bumblebee was the only one there.

"Wonder where Bulk is?" Miko asked from her position next to him.

When the three of them walked up to 'Bee, Raf asked, "Hey 'Bee, where are the others at?"

It did not take long for Bumblebee to answer him. _"We found a new bot yesterday but we aren't sure how he will react to you three so Arcee and Bulkhead are at base making sure that everything remains calm."_

"So Raf, where are Bulk and Arcee?" Miko asked him.

"'Bee says that they found a new bot yesterday but they don't know how he will react to humans." Raf translated.

He could practically see Miko's eyes double in size as she took in what he had just told her. Raf was surprised that she was quiet for as long as she was, which was about ten seconds. "What? What does he look like? What kind of weapons does he have? Does he have any battle scars? Is he as big as Bulk?"

Jack shook his head. "Miko, we can find out when we get there. Don't hound Bumblebee for the details."

Raf let out a laugh when Miko let off a pouty face before sighing and saying, "Fine, then what are we standing here for? Let's get to base to see the new bot!" She then jumped into Bumblebee's alt mode.

Raf just shook his head and got into the passenger seat, with Jack getting in the back next to Miko, before they headed off. "Hey 'Bee, what do you think about the new bot?"

There was a moment of silence before Bumblebee said, _"Well...he is different. He loves music but yet he can be more serious then Optimus at times. But, he does love to get a good laugh in. He is already starting to get on Ratchet's nerves. But, I've also noticed that he tinkers with some of Ratchet's broken equipment from time to time. It's like he has multiple personalities all shoved into his processor."_

"So, he is like, really random?" Raf asked.

But, before Bumblebee could answer, they came up to the entrance of the base. As they drove inside, Raf couldn't get the feeling of anticipation down. He had already met so many new bots that he wasn't sure that he could wait much longer to meet this new one. But, there was a slight worry in the back of his mind. What if this bot reacted badly to humans? Well, there was only one way to find out.

When Bumblebee stopped, the three of them hopped out and Raf saw that Arcee and Bulkhead were in the room along with Ratchet and Blaster. But, he was surprised that he didn't see the new bot.

"Hey, where's the new bot at?" Miko asked impatiently.

"I'm coming right now."

Raf froze at the voice. He had heard that voice before. When the footsteps of the bot drew closer, Raf couldn't help but stare. When the bot finally showed himself, Raf felt his eyes widen. Standing in front of him was one of the Dragon Scouters who had saved him. It was Beatdrop.

* * *

Beatdrop couldn't wait to meet the humans. After meeting Raf, it would be a nice experience to meet other humans and get to know them. When he had heard the girl's question, he had stopped his tinkering and walked into the main room. But, when he did, shock went through his systems when he saw Raf standing there with two older humans. Beatdrop's first thoughts were that it was awesome that he actually knew one of the humans already.

But, that reaction was soon covered by a fear of being exposed. While he was sure that Raf wouldn't expose him on purpose, he was afraid that Raf might let it slip now that he was here. Especially in these first few clicks unless he talked first. Luckily, talking was something that he was especially good at.

"Why hi there. The name's Beatdrop. Who are you all?" Beatdrop made sure to look specifically at Raf when he said that. Hopefully, the human would realize what he was trying to imply.

Thankfully, through some miracle by Primus, he did. "Nice to meet you Beatdrop. I'm Raf."

Beatdrop smiled and said, "Nice to meet you kid."

"I'm Jack." The older human introduced.

Beatdrop nodded and went to say something to him when the human femme walked up to him and said, "Hi Beatdrop. I'm Miko. Do you have any blasters? Have you ever ripped a 'Cons head off? How long do you think you could last in a match with Megatron? What's with the speakers on your shoulders? Are they used for weapons?"

Beatdrop stared at the human in shock as he tried to process her questions. There were so many and he wasn't sure where to begin. But, as the saying said, you had better start at the beginning or risk getting lost.

"Yes, I have a blaster; Yes, I have ripped a 'Cons helm off; I'm not sure how long I could last in a match with Megatron. My speakers, well, they can be used as weapons if I need them too but I just like using them to listen to music and to annoy medics." Beatdrop answered. He hoped he got them all.

"I heard that!" Beatdrop flinched when he heard Ratchet yell that but joined the others in laughing.

Feeling something crawling on his armor, Beatdrop was about to jump when he saw that it was Miko. Since he didn't want to scare her, or the Autobots, who were looking rather nervous, he stayed still and didn't move until she got to his hip, which tickled slightly. Putting his servo right next to her, Beatdrop smirked and said, "Let's take you up in style."

Miko nodded and jumped onto his waiting servo. While he was lifting her up, she said, "Hey, you have speakers for palms. Sweet!"

Beatdrop laughed and put his servo next to his shoulder. Once Miko was on his shoulder, he said, "I did tell you that I use my speakers for weapons at times. Also, they help with the surround sound. Great for parties."

She laughed and then asked, "Can you play something now?"

Beatdrop thought about that before saying, "Do you want something that will be annoying? Because, if you do, I have a plethora of songs to choose from that will drive him crazy." The him being Ratchet of course.

Miko's evil smirk and nod was all that he needed. Searching his music storage, he searched until he found the perfect song. But, before he could play it, Ratchet walked up to him and said, "If you dare, you and my wrench will get to know each other very soon."

Beatdrop smirked and said, "You'll never know when I do it old mech. I'm like a ninja with my skill."

Beatdrop jumped when he felt a light touch to his headphones. He then turned to the side and stared at Miko as she said, "How did you feel that? Are they a part of your helm? Can youtake them off?"

Beatdrop sighed at all of the questions that Miko was asking. How did she gather so many questions in such little time? Shaking his helm, he said, "I felt it because it is a part of my helm. I think that answer two of your questions. Now, as for the third one, the answer is no. I can't take them off. Trust me, I tried. The medic I found did not enjoy resetting them on my head. It took forever to reset my audios. I was not happy about the lack of hearing."

"You have participated in fighting? I thought that you were a neutral?" Prowl jumped in.

Beatdrop could see right away that Prowl was trying to trip him up. He knew that the ninja was suspicious of him and, while the suspicions were correct, Beatdrop couldn't let him know that. "It was vicious after I left Cybertron and the 'Cons didn't like that I was a neutral. Had to take a few out on my way here."

From the upset look that flashed across Prowl's face told Beatdrop that he had beaten the hidden challenge that he had just been given. So, in a reward to himself, Beatdrop smiled and said, "Well, I think I'm going to go back to the room that you all most graciously let me borrow." He then gave a wave to the humans before turning around and heading down the hallway.

* * *

Pandimala could feel that something was wrong. It was a deep feeling deep down that told her that something had happened. And, of course, she was right. It was late in the solar cycle the day after she had first sent Balm, Stormfire, and herself off to find any energon and sent Beatdrop off to try and figure out which 'Cons and 'Bots were on Earth and Pandimala was trying to contact Beatdrop.

"Beatdrop, come in. This is Pandimala. Please respond." Pandimala waited for an answer but all was quiet. This was highly unusual for Beatdrop. Usually, when she called in, he would give some quip about being out for so long. Even if he had been compromised, he would have turned on his comm. link so she could hear that he was compromised. But, all was silent. Something had to have happened.

Coming above the area of his last coordinate location, Pandimala transformed out of her jet mode and landed as lightly as she could in the strange canyon opening. Right away, she could tell that there was a fight. And, from the faint residue of sound energy, she knew that Beatdrop was involved in the fight.

"Why didn't you call for backup Beatdrop?" Pandimala muttered to herself. Something about this entire situation was off and she wanted to find out what it was. Beatdrop would have called in backup if the fight was too much for him to handle.

She stepped back to get a better look when she felt the composition of the sand underneath her pedes change. It was like it was matted together. Stepping back and kneeling to the ground, Pandimala picked up a sample of the matted sand and did a scan on it. The worry that she had been feeling earlier was now on the rise. The substance that matted the sand was energon. But, she held back her panic. It might be from whoever Beatdrop was fighting. There was only one way to tell if it was her soldier's energon.

Pandimala ran another scan. Because Beatdrop could switch his insignia from that of a Dragon Scouter to a neutral, his energon left behind a unique signature inside of his energon that was a ninety nine percent guarantee that it came from Beatdrop. When the scan finished its work, Pandimala examined the results and felt her spark stop.

"Beatdrop, what happened?" Pandimala whispered in a worried tone. She now knew that Beatdrop was most likely compromised and not able to contact her. That was not a good sign. Opening her comm. link, Pandimala said, "Balm, Stormfire; return to base immediately."

"What happened to Beat?" Balm asked.

"He has been compromised and is in unknown condition." Pandimala stated with a heavy spark before turning off her communicator. Beatdrop might have known the risk of his mission, but it did not take the guilt of sending him on the mission out of Pandimala's processor. He shouldn't have been left alone without backup. She could only imagine what sort of condition he was in.

* * *

"Did you all see the look on Beatdrop's faceplate when I rammed my sword into his pathetic chassis? He seemed almost shocked that I did it to him." Soundbite bragged.

Spittor laughed and said, "Yeah, and when boss bot put his gun against his helm, that sound bot froze so fast that I thought that he was on his own personal blizzard planet."

Blood Root just laughed and took a swig of his energon.

Contagion shook his helm when he saw the three bots like that. While he almost felt like celebrating like they were, he knew that it was still to early to know. He would celebrate the death of Beatdrop when he was positive that he was dead and he wouldn't be positive until Pandimala came blasting at him screaming revenge upon him for Beatdrop's offlining. That nano-click would be the one where he would join the other three in their laughter.

"Hey Contagion, come and join us." Blood Root called out to him.

Contagion shook his helm and said, "I'm not going to celebrate until I am positive that Beatdrop is offline."

Soundbite let out a sound of disbelief before saying, "Come on Contagion, not even Beatdrop could have survived that stab wound. Especially since we covered it up."

"I hate to agree with Soundbite, but he's right." Spittor stated. "There was no way he survived that."

But, Contagion could see that Blood Root was starting to think about this situation. Good. At least one of the brutes that he kept around had a processor that worked. "Wait you two. Contagion is right. We didn't stick around to make sure that his spark went out and we won't know if it did until we are confronted by those blasted Scouters."

Contagion nodded. "Now, so we can verify if our hit was successful, we will have to make ourselves known to the other factions." When the others started to complain, he held up a servo. "I don't like it, especially with that weak fool Megatron still running the Decepticons, but if the Scouters don't have Beatdrop, one of the other two factions might and then we would continue on thinking that Beatdrop is dead when he might be the one to offline us for our false sense of security." He really didn't like this situation one bit. They should have stuck around but they weren't ready to introduce themselves to the other factions and an open energon signal would have brought them all flocking to their previous position.

"So, what's the battle plan?" Spittor asked.

Contagion looked at them all. "We are going to see if Megatron is on this planet. If he is, then I will approach him and tell him about us and say that we are willing to be an ally to him to help fight off the Scouters, who will eventually end up allying with the Autobot weaklings. Of course, that alliance will only last for as long as is necessary." He did not like the idea of joining in an alliance with Megatron in the slightest. But, he did want to make sure that Beatdrop was offline. That mech had a habit of getting in his way and Contagion wanted him removed...permanently.

* * *

**Pandimala: Where is Authoress? I am going to rip her head off!**

**Balm: Calm down 'Mala, we need her alive and well so she can fix what she has done.**

**Stormfire: Now, we just have to find her.**

**Authoress: *hiding in personal dimension* I am not coming out of here until things get better...and that might be a while.**

* * *

**AN: Well, here is the next awesome chapter for this story! Looks like Beatdrop had better watch his step. Those Virons can be very deadly. Next chapter is going to have some glimpses into Beatdrop's past. They won't be big but it will start the dice rolling for later chapters. Maybe even a scene about Ratchet's past if I can fit it in. Until next time, please review this for me to tell me how you thought this went or if you have any predictions. Also, if you have any suggestions, please feel free to say them. I will give credit where due if I use them. See you later! =D  
**


	7. Friends

**Disclaimer: I only own my OCs.**

* * *

**Beatdrop: Authoress, not that it's not fun to talk with you, but it gets kind of old when it is just two of us.**

**Authoress: I know Beatdrop. And, that is why I have decided to allow a friend.**

**Raf: Hey Beatdrop.**

**Beatdrop: Raf! It's great to have you.**

**Authoress: I figured that since he is the only one, right now, that knows your secret, that he could join us here.**

* * *

Ch. 6: Friends

Pandimala knew that she was going to get an audio full when she got back to base. She had cut the others off and she knew that they were going to want answers. The only problem with that, though, was that she had none for herself. She had no clue what had happened or where Beatdrop was. There were very few options that she could think of that didn't include searching out the other faction bases and storming them to find out where Beatdrop was.

Landing on top of the base, Pandimala sighed before activating the elevator to take her down below into their base. It would be a small trip but the ride down into the main part of the base would give Pandimala time to think about this situation. They had to find Beatdrop and quickly. She did not want him to be hurt. That was one thing that she loved about her faction. They were not just random bots with the same belief; they were family. And they all cared for each other deeply. While a family did have secrets, Pandimala knew that they would be told in time.

"Pandimala what the frag is going on?" Stormfire asked as he and Balm approached her.

Pandimala sighed. "I found Beatdrop's energon at the site of his last coordinate transmission and there seems to be no sign of him. I haven't been able to raise him on his comm. link and you know that he would only not answer if he was compromised."

Balm nodded and asked, "Then, what are we going to do? We have to find him."

"I know that Balm! Don't you think that I have been trying to think of how the frag we are going to find him?" Pandimala snapped. She immediately felt bad and said, "I'm sorry for snapping Balm. I just have been worried about him since I found his energon."

"Hey, femmes, come here." Stormfire motioned them over to the main monitor.

As she walked over, Pandimala wondered just how he had gotten over there without her noticing. But, she was curious about what he had found and said, "Stormfire, what is it?"

He smirked at them and said, "I think I found a way to figure out, maybe, what happened to Beatdrop."

"Really? How?" Pandimala was excited that they might be able to find Beatdrop without busting down doors.

Stormfire smirked. "Well, it seems like Jasper High is looking for a temporary guidance councilor while their normal one goes on a vacation. So, one of us will simply go in our soliforms, a little older of course and with a new name, and take over the position. Hopefully, Raf will come in during that time and we can ask him if he has seen Beatdrop."

Pandimala mulled over the plan in her helm for a little before nodding. "That will work. But, the only one of us who will be able to pass as a councilor is," Then, both her and Stormfire turned to Balm.

Balm, on her part, let out a sigh and said, "Fine, I'll try. But, I have to get the job first. It shouldn't be too bad. After dealing with the younger recruits, these human younglings should be simple to give advice to."

Pandimala smiled at her friend. While her friend was full of confidence, Pandimala knew that the old saying was there for a reason. Sometimes, words would come and bite you on the aft.

* * *

"Pandimala, I take back what I said. These human younglings are worse then fresh recruits." Emmaline Burkhead, aka Balm, complained as the most recent kid left. He had complained about how his love life was in ruins and, when she had asked what he did toward it, he said that he ordered her to do everything. Emmaline had than said that she advised rethinking his approach in his relationship and maybe did some things for her. He seemed happy enough when he left so who knows what he was thinking.

From the earpiece her ear, Emmaline heard Pandimala say, "And you said it would be easy? Well, you'll just have to keep working on it Balm. I don't know how long it is going to take for Raf to come down but you need to make sure that you play your part."

Emmaline sighed. Of course Pandimala would say that. "I'm trying but do you know how pathetic these problems are? I mean, a girl won't go out with a jerk and he is upset and so he goes street racing for fun and now his grades are falling? I mean, it is driving me insane."

Emmaline then paused when she heard a knock at her door. The final bell had rang not too long ago and so this person must have wanted to not miss class. Hopefully this was a sign of a kid with a real problem and not some of the other ones that she had heard. "Hey, I got to let you go. See you later." She then closed the line.

"The door's open." Emmaline called out while straightening herself out. But, she almost fell out of her seat when she saw Raf walk in. This was good. The first day and she already got to meet with Raf. Her life was finally looking up.

"Hi, can I talk to you?" Raf asked.

Emmaline knew that she needed to play the part of the councilor so she nodded. "Of course, just sit right here. Whatever you say will stay between us two."

Raf nodded and sat in the chair in front of her desk. "Well, I just need a question answered. If you were keeping a big secret and couldn't tell anyone, what would you do to relieve the pressure of keeping it?"

"Well," Emmaline started, "I would talk to the person who gave me the secret to keep. That way, you are still talking about it but you aren't breaking the promise."

Raf then stood up and smiled. "Thank you." He then started to walk out.

"Raf wait!" Emmaline yelled. She had questions to ask him.

Raf paused and looked back at her. "How do you know who I am?"

Emmaline sighed. "It's me Raf. Balm. One of the Dragon Scouters you met the other day."

Raf was back to his seat faster then Emmaline thought he would be. "What are you doing here?" Raf asked.

Emmaline frowned slightly. "I need to ask you something. The day before yesterday, Beatdrop was attacked and we can't get a hold of him. I was wondering if your friends had heard anything."

To her relief, Raf nodded. "Yeah, he's at our base right now. The Autobots fixed him up."

Emmaline was relieved. "Thank Primus he is ok."

"Hey Balm, how come he doesn't have his Dragon Scouter insignia on?"

Emmaline sighed. "Well, he wasn't sure who would find him. Plus, remember, we don't want word of us out yet. Though, if Beatdrop stays there much longer, he will be found out eventually. Thank you so much for answering that Raf. Can you send him our regards?"

He smiled. "I'll try."

Emmaline smiled back. "That's all I can ask."

Raf then hopped down off of the chair and ran out the door. Emmaline then watched as he hopped in the car he normally did and, once it drove away, Emmaline got back on the phone. She had to inform Pandimala about what had happened.

* * *

Raf was wondering how he was supposed to tell Beatdrop that his team knew that he was at the Autobot base without making the Autobots become suspicious of him. It would be hard, but hopefully he could get it done.

"_Hey Raf, what took you?" _Bumblebee asked as he got inside.

Raf smiled. "I just had a talk with the new guidance councilor. She seems nice enough. Anything happen at base?"

He could feel Bumblebee laugh at that. _"Well, if you count Beatdrop blaring one of your human songs throughout the base while Ratchet was chasing him with a wrench, then yes, something did happen."_

Raf couldn't help but laugh at that. It was too hilarious. He couldn't picture what Bumblebee was telling him and, yet, it had happened. "Are they still running around?"

"_From when I left, Beatdrop was hanging from the ceiling dodging Ratchet's wrenches."_ Bumblebee answered.

Raf shook his head as they drove into the base. He was slightly hoping that they would still be in that position when he got in there. This might turn out to be a fun day at the base.

Once Bumblebee stopped, Raf hopped out and was slightly disappointed to see Beatdrop just walking away for what seemed like a lecture from Ratchet. Raf could definitely see the dents on Beatdrop that were most likely from Ratchet's wrench.

"Hey Raf, you missed the fun." Beatdrop said with a playful smile as he put his servo down.

Raf took the hint and hopped on before climbing on Beatdrop's shoulder. Glancing around, Raf noticed that everyone was kind of away from the two of them. This was probably going to be his best time to tell Beatdrop. "Hey Beatdrop,"

"Yeah Raf?" Beatdrop whispered back to him.

Raf was glad that Beatdrop understood the situation. It was going to make this information exchange a lot easier. "We got a new guidance councilor today. Her name is Emmaline Burkhead. You know her better as Balm."

Beatdrop seemed to be slightly surprised by that information and turned his helm closer to him. "Balm was at your school? What did she want?"

Raf let out a soft laugh. "Well, she wanted to know if my Autobot friends had heard anything about you. I told her that you were safe and at our base. She's worried that you won't be able to keep your secret for long."

Beatdrop let out a sigh. "I guess she is right. I already know that some of the bots here are suspicious of me. Hopefully, I can keep it long enough for them to locate me before the Virons do. They won't exactly like it that I'm alive now."

"They were the ones who attacked you; weren't they?" Raf asked.

But, to his disappointment, Bumblebee decided to come over at that moment. _"Hey Raf, want to play a game?"_

Raf wasn't going to say no, of course, so he smiled and said, "Sure." Raf then hopped onto Bumblebee's servo and was ready to play a game. But, he was curious about what Beatdrop's answer would have been.

* * *

Beatdrop stared at Raf as he played his video game. The human seemed just as curious as he was about unsolved mysteries and Beatdrop did not like keeping the information from the human. Actually, Beatdrop would have told Raf exactly what had happened if Bumblebee had not come over. He trusted the young human to keep what was said between the two of them and he knew that Raf was a very loyal friend.

"How are you holding up?"

Beatdrop nearly jumped when Optimus suddenly asked that from behind him. How did the big bots move so quietly? Turning to Optimus, Beatdrop said, "My side is still a little sensitive but I should be fine. Ratchet did a great job."

"Where have you been based?" Optimus asked him.

Beatdrop let out a sigh. Luckily, he knew how to answer that. "I stay in vehicle form when I am in cities and rest in parking lots. But, when I'm out in the country, I tend to try and find old mines and rest there. Actually felt nice to rest on a berth for once. Thanks for that by the way."

Optimus seemed to stare at him in shock before saying, "You're welcome. Have you met any other Cybertronians during your travels?"

"Besides the few that have helped me and, unfortunately, I have never been very good with names." Beatdrop stated. He really couldn't say some of the names of the bots that he learned, and knew. Especially since some of them were supposed to be offline.

"What is your opinion of humanity?" Optimus asked him.

Did the questions ever end? But, Beatdrop had to indulge the leader to keep his disguise up. "They are a new species but they seem to understand many of the issues that we deal with and are equal to us in many ways. I couldn't imagine why anyone would think that they weren't our equals." And that, was the honest truth. Humanity, while a young species, held the room to care and had an amazing ability to adapt to their surroundings.

When he didn't get an answer, Beatdrop turned to Optimus, or better yet, where the leader had been standing and frowned to see him walking away. Did this guy have any emotions?

"Hey Beatdrop,"

Beatdrop looked down at Miko as she started that. "Yes?"

She looked a little nervous about her statement. "I was just wondering if you had any family out there?"

Beatdrop could feel the room grow very tense at that question and he knew why. Many family members for many bots were offlined during the fighting on Cybertron, or just the fighting period, and it was usually hard for that bot to talk about it. He had even experienced a big loss. His best friends were both offlined. One was offlined during the very early fighting on Cybertron and his other friend had actually joined the Scouters with him. She had been offlined when a Viron ship stopped the ship that she was on from meeting with the command ship, which was currently space dust, and had chased them into the depths of space where the femme was offlined.

"Miko, you don't ask bots that." He heard Bulkhead say, snapping him out of his thoughts.

"No, it's alright. Just shocked me for a click." Beatdrop rebutted while shaking his helm. Looking at Miko, Beatdrop sigh. "Miko, in a since I don't have family out there. But, I have lost many friends who I have considered family for my entire existence." At Miko's solemn look, he smiled and said, "But, I still have many bots who I consider family still alive and out among the stars. That is what we should think about and be thankful for. I can't dwell on the past forever and I have to look at what I still have, instead of what I have lost."

He was glad when she looked happier. "Can you tell me about them?"

Beatdrop really didn't want to in fear he might let something slip about his true colors. So, instead, he said, "Maybe another time. I suddenly feel really tired. I think I'm going to hit recharge early." He then walked down the hall. When a memory from his younglinghood threatened to rise, he pushed it down. No need in bringing up the past. Especially since that bot was dead.

* * *

Ratchet sighed as he worked at his station. Beatdrop had talked so easily about losing friends that were like family that it seemed to him like the mech didn't really know what it was like, to lose a close friend. Everyday that he worked, he was reminded of his friend by the silence. Whenever he worked with her, she would never let the room stay quiet for too long. She would always try to get him to talk with her while he worked. Sometimes he indulged her and other times he simply listened.

"Ratchet, are you alright?"

Ratchet turned at Optimus voice. "Just some memories of the past coming up." Ratchet explained.

"Care to talk about them?" Optimus asked him.

Ratchet could see the seriousness in his friend's question so he nodded. "Not here. I don't want the others to know."

Optimus, thankfully, nodded in understanding and motioned for him to follow him to the med bay. Ratchet knew that there would be little distractions for them in there and it would put him in a place where he had control. Once they were inside and the door was closed, Optimus turned to him. "Ratchet, what has been troubling you?"

Sitting on one of the berths, Ratchet sighed. "It was right before the war started. I had two apprentices at the time. One, was Knockout, which you know about, and the other was a femme. The three of us had our differences but it was the femme that kept Knockout and I from strangling each other. When the talk of war started up, Knockout and I both knew exactly who we were going to follow if war did break out, which are our current factions. But, the femme said that she would not join either side. All she wanted was for our homeworld to stay safe. When war did break out, well, we all went out separate ways. Knockout went with the Decepticons and I, of course, went to the Autobots."

"While this femme stayed neutral?" Optimus asked.

Ratchet nodded. "Exactly. But, I kept tabs on her and her whereabouts, just in case she ever needed help. For most of the early fighting, before things got out of servo, I never heard a word of trouble coming toward her. But, that changed after one of the bombing raids. The settlement that was attacked was attacked by both sides, trying to gain it for ground. After the fighting was over, I was sent out to help any of our allies that might still be alive and wounded on the field. At first, I could not find any bots that were still online. But, just when I was about to leave, that changed."

Ratchet paused at that before continuing. "I found a neutral triple changer femme, half online, and her wing was damaged severely and her right arm was dangling. So, I set to work fixing her. While I was fixing her, the femme turned to me and asked me my name. I told her and asked her if there were any other bots around that she knew. Her faceplate grew so morbid that I almost feared what she was going to say, and I was right to. Because, the next words out of the femme's mouth was that my femme apprentice was offlined during the raid." Ratchet then fell silent after that. He had said as much as he could.

Thankfully, Optimus nodded slowly and said, "I am sorry for asking you to bring that up again. I can see it hurt you deeply. I'll leave you now." He then walked out of the bay.

When the doors closed, Ratchet sighed. He hated not telling Optimus everything, but he couldn't. That fragging promise that he had given to that other faction was still over his helm. He couldn't tell Optimus that his apprentice had joined a faction that was supposed to be a myth, and that the femme he had worked on happened to be their leader.

* * *

**Beatdrop: You had to make me think about them, again. You know it is hard for me to. The three of us were really close.**

**Authoress: I know, but it is for story development.**

**Raf: Who are they?**

**Beatdrop: Maybe another time Raf. It still hurts to talk about them. We were all close, like family.**

* * *

**AN: And, here is the next mind blowing adventure of this story! We get a sneak peak into both Ratchet's and Beatdrop's pasts! I wonder what their pasts will do for the story? Well, I can't blow anything but I promise that next chapter will be very informative on one of their pasts. Until then though, please leave a review. They let me know that people actually like these stories and, if you do, have some advice or something that you wish to see happen. Who knows, it might just happen. May Primus watch over you all! ;D**


	8. A Short Reunion

**Disclaimer: I only own my OCs.**

* * *

**Beatdrop: Ok, so who is up for a game?**

**Raf: I am!**

**Beatdrop: Nice! What about you Authoress? *sees Authoress smirking* Why are you smirking?**

**Authoress: Because this chapter is awesome!**

* * *

**AN: I do not own any of the song parts used. The first one are parts of Blow by Ke$ha but I am not sure who the second is by or what it is called. I just remember hearing it. Hope you enjoy the story!**

* * *

Ch. 7: A Short Reunion

Prowl took a quick glance at Beatdrop. He still didn't trust the 'neutral'. Something about the mech was saying that he wasn't telling the truth but Prowl couldn't prove it. When he had thought that he might have found a slip up, the fragging mech had covered it up so smoothly that he had fallen for it. But, Prowl had not missed the hesitant look that the mech would sometimes give when he was answering their questions. It was like the bot was making sure that he would not say something that could get him in trouble. But, Prowl wasn't sure what the bot was hiding.

"Hey Prowler, what's going on?" Jazz asked him.

Prowl sighed. "My name is Prowl, not Prowler. To answer your question, though, I am thinking. I don't trust that bot."

Jazz raised an optic ridge. "You mean Beatdrop? What's wrong with him?"

"He is hiding something from us. He pauses at certain intervals in his re-telling of his past and they hint at him knowing something that he does not want us to know." Prowl answered. That mech was not going to be trusted by him. Beatdrop was just too, obvious. He was trying too hard to look innocent that he was really looking guilty.

But, Jazz's sigh had Prowl turning to his friend. "Prowl, we all hide stuff from our pasts. Beatdrop might have just went through a lot that he doesn't want to share."

And Prowl knew that Jazz had a point. The emotional toll that the war had taken on many bots was extremely damaging and only Primus knew how each bot was effected by each offlining. But, that didn't make Prowl any less suspicious of Beatdrop. It only gave one excuse for the reasons that the mech was acting the way he was.

When alarms started blaring in the base, Prowl stood at attention. He knew that this probably meant that the Decepticons were finally making a move.

"Optimus, we've locked onto a major energon signal. I believe that it may be a Decepticon mining operation with the amount of energon showing on the scans." Ratchet reported.

Optimus nodded. "OK. Ratchet and Beatdrop, remain at base with the children until we return. Everyone else, roll out."

Prowl nodded his assent and transformed into his motorcycle mode before following Optimus through the bridge. He had been worried by the lack of Decepticon activity but this eased his worry. But, he now had to clear his processor and be ready for battle.

When they reached the other side, Prowl's furrowed his optic ridges in confusion. Instead of ending up in an energon mine, they were in the middle of a canyon. Prowl was nervous because he knew that this could end up being a trap.

"Optimus, this doesn't look right." Jazz stated.

Optimus nodded and said, "I know Jazz. I think," But, the sound of a blaster shot cut him off and said shot landed on the ground between Bumblebee and Bulkhead. "It's an ambush! Find cover quickly!"

Prowl quickly followed orders but he knew that the enemy had the advantage, so far. But, he was planning on changing that very soon.

* * *

Beatdrop sighed as he paced the room where he was currently being held. Well, held was a strong word. A more appropriate thinking would have been, currently staying, but the point was there. He was itching to go to the battle but asking to go without a very good reason would blow his cover as a neutral.

Feeling like someone was looking at him, Beatdrop quickly turned around and was just in time to see Ratchet jump. "Something wrong Ratchet? I can answer more questions if you want." Beatdrop asked innocently.

Ratchet narrowed his optics at him, which just made him enlarge his smirk, before said medic bot said, "Nothing is wrong. I was just wondering why you didn't ask to go with them."

Beatdrop sighed. "I have seen what starts as a simple mission end up as a deadly fight where the ones you care about offline." As soon as he finished, Beatdrop mentally faceplate palmed himself. Why did he say mission? Why the frag did he say that? He just had to open his big aft mouth.

He gulped as Ratchet stared at him in shock. Thankfully, the humans must not have noticed anything wrong with his statement because they were silent. The Autobot had to think that he was a Decepticon spy. Beatdrop had to think of a way to explain everything to the medic.

"Beatdrop, I need to give you a checkup; now." Ratchet stated in a tense voice. He had to be nervous about who he actually was and what he was doing here.

Beatdrop slowly nodded before walking to med bay, allowing Ratchet to follow him to make sure that the medic felt in control. He did not want Ratchet to attack him before he could explain. Walking into the med bay, Beatdrop slowly sat on the berth, put his tentacles out and behind him so Ratchet wouldn't fear him, and slowly put his long arms into a surrender position.

"Who are you really and why are you here?" Ratchet asked in a no nonsense tone.

Beatdrop knew that he had to be honest. Hopefully, Ratchet wouldn't throw him in the brig. "My name is Beatdrop, like I said, and the reason why I am here is because of why I said. But, the actual attack was, modified, by me upon my arrival here to keep my vow. I was ambushed in that canyon you found me in but it was by four Cybertronians who are a part of a faction called the Virons. They hate my faction, the Dragon Scouters, and have no conscious inside of them. They are ruthless and will kill anything for fun. They found me, alone, and decided to let me offline slowly. So, I was stabbed and the wound was covered before I was left to offline."

"Then why did we find you first and not your team?" Ratchet asked.

Beatdrop was surprised. Ratchet was taking this pretty well. "We were spread across the globe. The three others of my team, who I cannot reveal without their permission, went to the far reaches of this planet to look for energon reserves. My mission was to see what Autobots and Decepticons were on Earth."

"How did you know that we were on Earth?" Ratchet asked.

"Well, I kinda met Raf already...in this form." Beatdrop then delved into the explanation, leaving out his teammates' names, of how he really met Raf. After he was done, Ratchet had a thoughtful look on his faceplate.

"I thought something seemed off with Raf when he came here after his ordeal. I guess I should thank you for saving him from those Virons." Ratchet then motioned to himself. "Just to let you know, since I can reveal this to another Dragon Scouter, that I have met members of your faction before back on Cybertron."

"I was wondering why you were acting with as much understanding as you were. That makes sense now." Beatdrop then frowned. It was way to quiet outside for his liking. "Ratchet?"

"What?" Ratchet responded.

"Is it normally this quiet with the humans around?" Beatdrop asked.

Ratchet paused at that, like he was listening, before saying, "It is never this quiet."

Beatdrop saw the worry in Ratchet's optics and knew that something was wrong. They both darted out of the med bay and stared in shock at the human area. It was deserted. The humans were nowhere to be seen.

"Where could they have gone?" Beatdrop asked in shock. These humans were tricky. They had somehow avoided everyone's notice and had disappeared.

Ratchet's sigh of annoyance told him that this had happened before. "Miko. She went through the bridge with everyone else and the boys followed to get her back." Ratchet then put a servo to his helm.

Yep. He was right. Miko had ended up being the troublemaker that he thought she was. Was she on one of those...oh what did the humans call them...Oh, sugar highs? But, on a serious note, he knew that they had to get them back, quickly. "Ratchet, can you open some coordinates some distance behind the ones that you sent the Autobots to?"

"Hypothetically, yes I could. By why are you asking?" Ratchet answered.

Beatdrop sighed in exasperation before pointing to the ground bridge. "Because one of us need to go and get them. The others might be busy and you need that energon. I can get in and get out before they will realize that I am there, unless there is some fighting going on." From the look he was getting from Ratchet, he knew that the medic didn't want him leaving the base. So, sighing, he said, "Ok, it is like this. Either you go and get them and leave me, an intelligence bot, at your base alone to have all sorts of fun while you will have to deal with the kids or, you will bridge me through so I can find the kids and get them back here."

Ratchet then seemed to get the idea because he said, "Fine, I'll bridge you through. But, call in for a bridge as soon as you secure the children."

Beatdrop nodded. He could agree with that. Plus, it would allow him to get out of the base, though he wasn't going to tell Ratchet that during his argument. The bot might think he might go for a joyride and, while a joyride sounded great, he wouldn't risk the kids.

When the ground bridge opened, Beatdrop smiled and nodded to Ratchet before running through.

* * *

On the other side, Beatdrop grew worried when he heard the sound of blasters and fighting. Since they were in a canyon and he could not detect any energon, the team had walked into an ambush. Beatdrop knew that he had to find the kids quickly and get them out of there. They could be seriously injured if he didn't. Beatdrop adjusted his audios to amplify and hone in on the kids' voice patterns. This way, he would be able to zone out the battle sounds and find the kids a lot quicker. At first, he couldn't hear a thing and he was afraid that something might have already happened to them.

"Jack, give me my phone back!"

And there was Miko's yell. It would have been almost inaudible if he was listening for it in normal ways, but he wasn't so he could hear the yell and, better yet, he could trace it to its origin. They were in a side path of the canyon that was in-between himself and the battle. That was good. He wouldn't have to get his servos dirty to get the kids back to base. He walked calmly and was about to turn around the corner when another voice's presence, one he had heard from the clips that they had all looked at, traveled into his audios.

"What are the three Autobot pets doing out here all alone and without there guardians?" The voice of the Decepticon known as Starscream stated.

Quickly getting on his communicator, Beatdrop called the Autobot base. "Ratchet, is Starscream still with the 'Cons?" Even the Dragon Scouters knew of the treacherous nature of Starscream and Beatdrop didn't want to attack the bot unless absolutely necessary.

The response to his question was immediate. "Starscream's there? He went loner a while back. Why? Where is he?"

"I can't see him but I heard his voice and it is near the kids' voices." Beatdrop responded. Time was of an essence and every second counted.

"Get them out of there now! Starscream is probably planning on using them for leverage and, whether it be for leverage with the Decepticons or the Autobots, we cannot let Starscream have possession of the children. Who knows what he will do with them while they are with them?" Ratchet answered.

Beatdrop growled. "If it is even half of what the Virons would do, I am kicking his aft from here to Velocitron and back." He then shut off his communicator.

"Run!" Beatdrop heard Jack's voice say before he heard the sound of their footsteps running in his direction. Starscream must have been blocking the way to the other bots.

Beatdrop knew that the best way to get Starscream away from them would be to hit him with a single blast of bass sound. But, that powerful of a blast could damage the children's hearing temporarily and he didn't want to do that unless he had to. Remembering that Raf had a phone, Beatdrop hacked into the phone database so he could have a 'number' for his name and sent a quick call through to the boy.

"Who is this?" Raf asked. It was kind of weird for Beatdrop because he could hear Raf's voice both through the phone and in the air around him.

"Raf, this is Beatdrop. How close is Starscream behind you all?"

"He's probably three of your steps behind us."

Beatdrop sighed. Why did this have to be so difficult? "Raf, I need you to cover your ears when I hang up and tell your friends to do the same. I can aim my blast above your heads but it is going to be loud. Starscream is moving a little faster then Soundbite was when he attacked you in the canyon with the others."

"Ok, thanks for the heads up." Raf said.

Beatdrop then hung up the line and did a quick countdown to three, to give the humans time to cover their ears, before taking a quick glance into the canyon to locate Starscream's position. Once he had it, he left his servo out and charged up a deep bass sound before letting it rip. The sand was thrown up everywhere and, when he heard a thud near the middle of the canyon, Beatdrop knew that his aim was still perfect.

Since he could use the raised sand as a smokescreen, Beatdrop ran out and quickly located the humans. Picking them up, Beatdrop made to run back around his corner. But, when a rocket launcher zoomed past, Beatdrop froze. He wouldn't risk the humans' safety because he wanted to see if he could outrun a second shot.

"Who do you think you are?" The screechy voice of Starscream stated.

Beatdrop turned around and said, "My name is Beatdrop and I am a neutral and that is ALL you need to know." He was still mad that Starscream had attacked the kids.

"If you truly are a neutral, then release those organics into my custody and be on your way before I have to blow you up with them for your insolence." Starscream walked forward a step.

Beatdrop growled and walked back a step. Opening up a private comm. with the Ratchet, he said, "Ratchet, I need you to open a bridge to the coordinates you used for me and walk through. The area is clear of enemies, besides Starscream, who is in front of me, and be ready to get the kids out of here. Everything is going to happen quickly so I need you to be ready."

"Ok, the bridge is open and I am going through. You are going to fight him, aren't you?"

"Of course I am, I have to keep Starscream from following them and maybe catching them." Beatdrop sent before cutting the line. He then looked down at the three humans in his servos. "You three. When I put you down, I want you to run around the corner behind me. Ratchet is waiting there with a ground bridge to take you back to base." He was glad when the three humans nodded in agreement, though Miko didn't look very happy about it.

"You fool, look at me while I am talking to you!" Starscream yelled. Oops. Beatdrop hadn't even realized that Starscream had been talking that entire time. Though, it was a good thing that he was. He wouldn't suspect what was planned, which included a pure beat down from himself...and his music.

"While I would wish that you would use less demanding nature to talk to me, I will release the organics. They won't help me like I thought they would. Oh well." Beatdrop stated in an uncaring way. The surprised look on Starscream's faceplate was worth it and it would make the beat down coming so much better.

As he knelt down and moved his servo closer to the ground, he said, "Remember, run."

Thankfully, as soon as his servo hit the ground, the three humans in his servo wasted no time in jumping down and sprinting around the other side of the turn.

"You fool! You will pay dearly for that you neutral creation of a glitch!" Starscream hissed at him before taking out his talons.

But, instead of answering in his own voice, Beatdrop stood back to his full height before putting his helm down. A female human voice came out of his speakers chuckling and Starscream looked confused before the female voice on the music recording said, _**Dance**_.

Starscream then seemed shocked when the beat of the song surrounded the canyon but did no damage. Well, it wasn't supposed to hurt, yet. Taking Starscream's confusion into his advantage, while still playing the music, Beatdrop dashed toward the mech before jumping up and slamming his pede into the mech's faceplate. Beatdrop skidded to a stop but smirked when he watched Starscream land near the end of the canyon to where the Autobots were fighting. Smiling to himself, Beatdrop ran at Starscream while changing the frequency of the song from surrounding to attack. To his amusement, though his anger at Starscream was still present, the song was at the chorus.

_**This place's about to blo-o-o-o-o-o-o-ow, blo-o-o-o-o-o-o-ow. This place's about to blo-o-o-o-o-o-o-ow, blo-o-o-o-o-o-o-ow. This place's about to blo-o-o-o-o-o-o-ow, blo-o-o-o-o-o-o-ow.**_

Starscream was blown back by the shear force of the music, let alone the extra bass that he had packed into the chorus. Beatdrop wasted no time in growling and charging out of the canyon toward the seeker.

He could see the shocked looks from both sides but his anger was solely on the jet mech that was in his sights. The pathetic mech, on his part, had a panicked look on his faceplate and was backing up. It only took Beatdrop a few steps to reach the femme-like mech and, when he did, Beatdrop wrapped his spindly digits around the seekers neck and slammed the bot against the canyon.

"Now, you listen to me and you listen well. If I ever hear of you even thinking about taking those children again or if you ever hurt them in the slightest way, I will bring down upon you a torture so painful and dark that not even Unicron himself would think to dare use it. And just to let you know that I am serious," Beatdrop stated before turning and lobbing the mech into the air before shooting Starscream with the same bass beat that he did to save the kids. The seeker flew in his base mode for a few clicks before he fell to the ground and then Beatdrop watched as the seeker ran.

After Beatdrop calmed down some, he glanced over at the Autobots and saw that they were staring at him in shock. Great, that meant that he would have to 'explain' himself somehow for how he fought and why he was there in the first place.

_**Beatdrop.**_

Even though Beatdrop knew that song had the word beat drop separated, he also knew that someone was using clips to talk. The reason he knew that was because, back on Cybertron, he used to talk that way with his closest and dearest friends when they didn't want to be understood. But, who on Earth would be talking to him in the clip way now?

Slowly turning around, Beatdrop studied the group of Decepticons in front of him and stared in shock when his gaze fell upon a mech with a visor for a face. Even though the mech looked completely different, Beatdrop knew who the mech was right away.

"Soundwave, you're alive." Beatdrop whispered in shock.

* * *

There is a common misconception that Soundwave was a mindless drone that somehow started sometime during the war. To Soundwave, well, he preferred to keep it that way. It gave him the excuse to wear the mask, and to remain silent as a keeping of a vow he made at the dawn of the uprisings, before the actual war began. But, at the very moment he saw Beatdrop charge around the corner and at Starscream, Soundwave could not help but remember the past. A past that was before he donned his visor mask and took his vow of silence. Back, when he, Beatdrop, and a femme younger then the two of them would play together in the nicer parts of Kaon, which weren't really nice.

Flashback:

_Soundwave smiled as he looked around his backyard. His friend, Beatdrop, and himself, were playing a game of hide and seek and Beatdrop was hiding. Soundwave knew most of the good hiding places at his house so he knew that there was nowhere for Beat to hide._

"_I'm going to find you Beat!" Soundwave called out. But, when Soundwave looked in the last good spot to hide, he became a little frustrated. "Beatdrop, where are you?" _

_Soundwave let out a small grunt when he suddenly felt a heavy mass fall on top of him and tackle him to the ground. "Got ya 'Wave." Beatdrop laughed._

_Beatdrop then got off of Soundwave and the two burst out into laughter. "Why can't I ever find you Beat?" Soundwave asked. _

_Beatdrop smiled. "Because, I'm too quiet for you."_

_Soundwave raised an optic ridge at that and said with a smile, "You quiet? Did the planet explode?"_

"_He can be quiet when he wants to, which is to trick you Soundwave."_

_The two mechs turned and smiled at the third and final member of their trio as she walked up. She had a smile on her faceplate that she wore everyday that seemed to make living in Kaon a little bit better than it was._

End of Flashback

"Soundwave, you're alive."

When Beatdrop said that, Soundwave felt relieved. He had been slightly afraid that Beatdrop wouldn't remember who he was. But, by how Beatdrop said that, he remembered and Soundwave was glad.

But, since he took his vow of silence, Soundwave simply nodded. He felt bad when he saw Beatdrop's frown appear at that but there was nothing he could do. His vow was still over him because he had redid it when he knew that their femme friend had offlined as well. He could not break it; not even for Beatdrop.

Soundwave walked closer to Beatdrop when Megatron said, "Decepticons, retreat!"

Frag it! He was so close to talking to Beatdrop and Megatron stopped him. But, he had to obey his leader and so he opened a ground bridge for the troops and ran through the bridge. But, before he disappeared, he took one last look at Beatdrop.

* * *

Optimus couldn't help but stare. Beatdrop had pretty much tossed Starscream around like he was a practice drone. Then, he had been shocked to see Soundwave and, from what he said, he thought that the mech was offline. There was something going on.

"Beatdrop, why are you here?" Prowl asked.

Beatdrop's back was to him and it was silent for a few clicks as Beatdrop stared at where Soundwave had been. Optimus could see that Prowl was getting irritated at the lack of a response and seemed to be about to ask again when Beatdrop turned around.

"The kids followed you here. Ratchet sent me to bring them back. But, Starscream got in the way and I had to take care of him." Beatdrop answered slowly.

"Where are the children now?" Optimus asked.

"They are at base with Ratchet now. He opened another bridge and got them back safely while I held off Starscream." Beatdrop answered.

Optimus nodded. He was glad that Beatdrop had rescued the children from Starscream. But, now he had a question of his own. "Beatdrop, how do you know Soundwave?"

Optimus could immediately see Beatdrop tense at that question. "We grew up together in Kaon." Beatdrop seemed to be very blunt with his answers and Optimus was curious as to why that was. The mech hadn't seemed like a bot who would be so short with his answers. Something must have happened in the past between Beatdrop and Soundwave.

"Why did you think that Soundwave was offline?" Blaster asked him.

Again, Optimus could see the nervousness return to Beatdrop at that and, at first, he thought that Beatdrop would not respond to the question. But, thankfully, the neutral did. "I was trying to find shelter during one of the early attacks and I had heard that Soundwave had joined the Decepticons. When I got to safety, I found a bot that told me that a 'Con with tentacles like mine was in the middle of an explosion. I had seen the explosion and I knew that nothing could have survived it. That incident made me pause in becoming a Decepticon. But, growing up in Kaon, I learned to hate the council and I still do. So, I knew that joining the Autobots was a no for me at the time." He then turned around so his back plates were facing them.

Optimus felt sorry for the mech. He had thought that his best friend, who had turned out to be Soundwave, was offlined and had lived with that loss for countless stellar cycles. But, today that loss had been lifted and Soundwave knew of Beatdrop too. Now, though, that put Beatdrop in a strange situation. "Are you going to join the Decepticons now that you know Soundwave is alive?"

To his surprise, Beatdrop shook his helm. "No. While I wish I could be with Soundwave, the Decepticons have changed too much since I last saw them to join them with a clear conscious." He then turned back to them. "Can we go back to your base now? I am feeling extremely worn out."

Optimus knew that was Beatdrop's way of saying that he had a lot to think about and, honestly, Optimus couldn't blame him. The mech had a lot to think about and there were going to be decisions that had to be made.

* * *

**Beatdrop: Soundwave is alive? Authoress this is one of the best chapters that you have ever done.**

**Authoress: Thanks Beatdrop.**

**Raf: Plus, you saved us from Starscream.**

**Beatdrop: How did Miko sneak out anyways?**

**Raf: She has kinda become a pro at this point.**

**Beatdrop: Of course she is. So, who wants to play hide and seek?**

**Authoress: I'm game.**

**Raf: Me too!**

* * *

**AN: And here is another awesome chapter of this story! Beatdrop and Soundwave grew up together! If you are wondering who the femme is, then you will have to find out later. She will be mentioned as well as who she was to them. Also, I plan on bringing Soundwave's other 'casseticons' (I can't remember what they are called in Prime right now) in a few ways that will somewhat shock you. But, again, that won't be until later. Next chapter is going to have some trouble for Beatdrop. Hopefully, he...I'm talking too much. If you have any ideas or suggestions for this story, please don't be afraid to say them. Who knows? I might use what you say and I will give full credit where due. Until next time though, please review!**


	9. Identity Crisis

**Disclaimer: See previous chapters.**

* * *

**Beatdrop: Ok, something is going to go down. **

**Raf: Why do you say that Beatdrop?**

**Beatdrop: Because the name of this chapter.**

**Raf: Ah, I see.**

**Authoress: *chuckles evilly***

* * *

Ch. 8: Identity Crisis

Soundbite growled as he stood in front of the communication monitor. Somehow, he had been chosen to introduce the Virons to the Decepticons and, somehow, ask if they had seen Beatdrop without saying too much about what they wanted to do. But, his communication wasn't being picked up at all. It was very frustrating and Soundbite felt like going out and hunting the fraggers himself.

"Who is this?"

Soundbite held back a sigh of annoyance and said, "My name is Soundbite and I am a member of a third faction called the Virons. We have much in common Megatron."

There was silence on the other side of the line for a click. "Why have you contacted us, Soundbite?"

Soundbite smirked to himself. These 'Cons wasted no time, he would give them that. "I have called to inform you of a group of bots, a fourth faction, who will stand in your way. They are led by a foolish leader who is very sentimental about all of her troops."

"And why would they bother us? And who says that you will not mess with our plans?" Megatron asked.

Soundbite knew that he had to tread cautiously. "They would bother you because they seem to have made it their mission to protect all humans while here on Earth and we won't be messing with your plans because we have this other group to deal with. Have you met any new Cybertronians lately?"

There was another pause. Soundbite was getting annoyed with these pauses. He liked straight answers. Of course, he didn't mind giving the not so straight answers; especially when messing with Beatdrop's helm.

"As a matter of fact, we have." And that caught Soundbite's attention. "Just the other day, a neutral mech attacked a rogue Decepticon while we were fighting the Autobots and he seemed to fight with both his fists and sound."

"Did the mech say what his name was?" Soundbite had a very strong suspicion that it was,

"No. But, one of my soldiers knew it. His name is Beatdrop."

Frag it. It was Beatdrop. That mech had to have at least twenty lives. Why couldn't that mech just die? But, this was also a very good thing. Beatdrop wouldn't expect an attack from the Decepticons and they could expose his insignia because Soundbite had a strange feeling that Beatdrop was staying with the Autobots but they probably didn't know his faction since Megatron had identified him as a neutral, instead of a Dragon Scouter.

"Megatron, that mech is no neutral. He is a Dragon Scouter. They are the fourth faction. Now, if you want to put a crushing on his spirit, then here is what I suggest you do to him next time you see him." Soundbite started before saying the one way to force Beatdrop to show his insignia. Even if Megatron couldn't complete the process while on the battlefield, it would finish on its own once Megatron got it started. Soundbite wanted Beatdrop to feel like he could turn to nobody for help and that would be when they would strike again.

* * *

Beatdrop sighed as he woke up. This would not be a good day. He could feel it. Of course, the recharge dream he had that night was one to cause him worry. In it, everyone that he knew and cared about turned their backs on him, leaving him alone to be slaughtered. Hopefully, it was just a dream and he could shrug it off. He had too many thoughts on his processor right then to be worrying about a dream gone wrong. He wasn't sure what he should do. He felt like he was betraying his friend for even living with the Autobots temporarily but he couldn't do a thing until he contacted Pandimala again.

Walking into the main room, Beatdrop smiled when he saw that everyone else was there, even the kids were there, surprisingly. He thought that they had school.

"Hey Raf, I thought you all had school today?" Beatdrop asked.

Raf shook his head and said, "Nope, it got canceled because a water main broke and they couldn't get it fixed. But I did run into Mrs. Burkhead on my way to meet up with 'Bee. She was with her husband and a friend of theirs."

Beatdrop knew that meant that Balm, Stormfire, and Pandimala had approched him and had asked Raf to tell him something. Putting his hand down, Beatdrop put Raf on his shoulder and asked, "What did they have to day?"

"Well, Stormfire said that he hoped you were getting along fine and Pandimala said that they would be able to help get you out of here soon and to keep up your charade." Raf whispered. "Oh, and Balm said not to do anything stupid."

Beatdrop was glad that he would be able to get out of the Autobot base. But, he would make sure to visit Raf every so often. "Of course Balm would say that. She worries like no other."

He almost dropped Raf when the alarm suddenly sounded. "What is that?" Beatdrop asked because it sounded a little different then the other alarms he had heard.

Raf fixed his glasses and hopped into Beatdrop's servo before saying, "Someone's trying to call in. Though I don't know who it could be."

Beatdrop nodded and let Raf off at the human area before he walked up to the monitor with the others. "Who is it?" Arcee asked.

Ratchet seemed to study the sending coordinates before saying, "It is Megatron."

Everything in base went silent and it unsettled Beatdrop. He didn't like things being quiet.

"Let the call come through Ratchet." Optimus' voice broke through the silence and almost everyone seemed to nod in understanding. He understood why. Beatdrop was also curious as to why the leader of the Decepticons would be calling them when he suffered a defeat the other solar cycle. "Megatron, what do you want?" Optimus asked in a no nonsense voice when the line was opened.

"What do I want Prime? Well, I want many things but, right now, I wish to meet the neutral that you are sheltering in your base." Megatron answered.

Beatdrop frowned. Why would Megatron want him? Was Soundwave trying to get him to join the 'Cons? Beatdrop turned to Optimus and saw the hesitation in the leader's optics. He wasn't sure what to do. "Why do you wish to meet with Beatdrop, Megatron?" Optimus questioned.

"Does it matter when I have hidden a bomb in a very populated human settlement that I will activate if I do not meet with Beatdrop? I suggest you bring him to these coordinates in the next five clicks or I will activate it." A set of coordinates were then sent through before the line went dead.

The base was silent for a few nano-clicks. "He is bluffing. Megatron would not risk exposing us during this relic hunt." Prowl stated.

But, Beatdrop couldn't take that risk. There were human lives at stake and he would not allow them to be hurt. "No. I will go. Humanity will not take the fall if this is not a bluff. I can handle myself." Beatdrop stated.

Everyone then turned to Optimus. The Autobot leader stared at him and said, "I too agree with Beatdrop. While Megatron may not have this weapon, we can not take that chance. But, Beatdrop will not be going alone. Prowl, Jazz, Bulkhead, and Arcee; you will come with me and we will make sure that Beatdrop remains safe during this."

Beatdrop went to argue but when he saw the look in Optimus' optics, he went silent. He had seen that look in Pandimala's optics many times. It was the 'do not argue with me' look, though it looked a lot nicer coming from Optimus then Pandimala. This one was like asking nicely and Pandimala's usually meant to not argue or 'be stuck in training simulator on hardest level for five cycles'. Not very fun.

So, instead, Beatdrop nodded and, when the ground bridge opened, he said, "Ok then. Let's go see Megsy." He then walked through the bridge.

When Beatdrop got to the other side, he was nervous. He didn't see Soundwave. Instead, from the files he had read, he saw Megatron, Dreadwing, Knockout, some Insecticons, and a bunch of drones. He was nervous about this entire thing. When the bridge closed, Beatdrop knew that this show was about to get started.

* * *

"Beatdrop, it is a pleasure to meet you. Please, come forward. You are a neutral and have nothing to fear from us." Megatron stated.

Optimus could see the worried look on Beatdrop's faceplate. Of course, he would have been surprised if the mech wasn't nervous. The mech had threatened to destroy many humans just to get Beatdrop here. None of them knew what Megatron had planned.

Optimus took out his left blaster when Beatdrop started to walk toward Megatron. He would be ready to cover the neutral if something was going to go wrong.

But, when Beatdrop just kept walking forward until he was almost within servo reach of Megatron. Optimus glanced at his team and knew that they were all now very nervous. This was, as the humans said, like playing with fire. If they weren't careful, someone would get burned. And, Optimus knew that person, or bot in this case, would be Beatdrop.

Beatdrop nodded his helm and said, "Megatron. I am curious as to why you asked me here? I am only a neutral after all. What could you want me for?"

Megatron gave a fake smile at that. "Beatdrop, while you may be a neutral now, I am hoping to show you the truth about the Decepticons and the Autobots. You seem to be a strong soldier who could only excel under my command."

So that was it. Megatron wanted to try and recruit Beatdrop. But, Optimus was sure that Beatdrop would not accept. Megatron wanted nothing to do with humanity and Beatdrop loved humanity, from what they had all seen.

"I am sorry Megatron, but I have no plan on joining the Autobot or Decepticon factions at this time." Beatdrop answered very diplomatically. Optimus could tell that Beatdrop didn't want to make Megatron angry.

But, Optimus became nervous when Megatron simply nodded. He never took rejection that well. "I understand completely Beatdrop."

That must have shocked Beatdrop too. "Really?"

Megatron nodded and said, "Of course." He then raised one of his servos.

None of them could react fast enough when two of the Insecticons grabbed hold of Beatdrop's arms and held him in place. Optimus went to stop them but everything happened too quickly and he had to stop or risk Megatron killing Beatdrop.

"What are you doing? Let me go!" Beatdrop yelled as he struggled against his captors' holds. Optimus hated not being able to help but there was little that he could do.

Megatron's chuckling had Optimus turning back to him and Optimus watched as Megatron said, "Beatdrop. You think that you are so clever. But, I have recently been in contact with a bot who goes by the designation of Soundbite and he says that all is not what it seems with you."

When Beatdrop stopped struggling and seemed to stare at Megatron, Optimus could tell that Beatdrop was shocked at what Megatron had said.

"What are you talking about?" Beatdrop asked, though Optimus could detect a small amount of panic in Beatdrop's voice as he asked that.

Optimus was confused when Megatron put his servo on the opening between Beatdrop's upper right arm plating and his lower right arm plating. "Oh, you know exactly what I am talking about Beatdrop. You aren't the neutral that you have been claiming." Megatron then whispered something to Beatdrop before ramming his servo underneath Beatdrop's upper right armor plating.

"No! You can't do this! Get out of there! STOP!" Beatdrop yelled as Megatron moved his servo underneath Beatdrop's armor. Optimus wanted to stop it but the Decepticons were tense and the five of them were far outnumbered. Plus, if he did call in backup, Optimus knew that Megatron might hurt Beatdrop even more and he did not want that happening.

Optimus jumped when the same bass sound that Beatdrop used on Starscream filled the air and he watched in surprise as Megatron went flying back. Then, almost right after, Beatdrop turned his wrists to the Insecticons before doing the same to them.

"Beatdrop get back." Optimus yelled as he ran forward. But, he didn't need to as Beatdrop quickly stepped back, clutching the arm that Megatron had invaded.

Running up to Beatdrop, Optimus helped hold the mech up. "Optimus, get me out of here." He heard Beatdrop hiss in pain. Whatever Megatron did to Beatdrop's arm, it had to be serious.

"Ratchet, this is Optimus. Open a ground bridge now!" Optimus said through the comm. link before pulling Beatdrop away.

Megatron's chuckle had him turning to his enemy. "Oh Optimus, I would watch out for that mech if I were you. He is more than he seems." Megatron smirked before going through his own bridge.

Optimus was confused by that statement but pulled Beatdrop through the bridge.

* * *

Ratchet was worried. With Beatdrop being a Scouter, he knew that the mech's secret would be coming out sooner rather than later. Beatdrop was good at hiding, he would give the mech that, but Beatdrop had a habit of running his mouth a little too much. That was how he found out. Now that he was thinking, Ratchet realized that Beatdrop had come in the escape pod that they had found along with whatever other bots he was with. But, unfortunately, Beatdrop wouldn't say who those bots were. It was bothering him to no end not knowing what other Dragon Scouters were present on Earth.

"Hey Ratchet, what are you doing?" Raf asked him.

Ratchet looked at Raf and said, "I am waiting for Optimus to send for a bridge. They might need to leave in a hurry and I want to be ready."

Raf nodded and said, "What do you think about Beatdrop?"

Ratchet smirked and realized that Raf didn't know that he was in on the secret. So, he said, "As a neutral, I say that he is pretty wreckless, but," He then leaned in closer before he said, "As a Dragon Scouter, he is just normal."

Raf stared at him in shock before saying, "You know too? How?"

"I found out while you three were out during the last fight, where Beatdrop had to save you all." Ratchet stated.

Raf nodded and said, "So, you worried about this whole thing?"

Ratchet nodded. He was indeed worried. Beatdrop reminded him, somewhat, of his femme apprentice and he didn't want to lose her again. "Yes, I am worried about him. He is taking a big risk in meeting with Megatron. We can not know what Megatron's true intentions are."

"Ratchet, this is Optimus. Open a ground bridge now!" Optimus voice came through the comm. link.

Running over to the bridge controls, Ratchet threw the switch and waited for them all to get back. Prowl, Jazz, Bulkhead, and Arcee were the first to run through. Then, a few nano-clicks later, Optimus walked through supporting Beatdrop, who was clutching his upper arm like it was injured.

"What happened?" Ratchet asked.

"Megatron did something to his wiring under his upper arm plating. We don't know what and Beatdrop won't remove his servo." Arcee stated.

Ratchet walked up to Beatdrop and said, "Remove your servo Beatdrop."

But, to his surprise, Beatdrop shook his helm. "I can't Ratchet."

"Beatdrop, I have to see if there is any lasting damage." Ratchet argued.

But, Beatdrop again shook his helm. "I'm fine Ratchet. There isn't any damage. I just need to go to my room."

But, surprisingly, Prowl stepped forward and said, "No. We need to see what Megatron did to you."

Beatdrop's growl though, surprised the medic even more. "Keep away from me." He then suddenly lunged forward and Bulkhead rammed his wrecking ball into Beatdrop, sending the mech flying until his helm hit the wall.

"Everyone, stand down!" Optimus ordered.

But, a gasp from Blaster had them all looking at him. "That wasn't on his arm before."

They all then turned to where Blaster was pointing and Ratchet felt grief when he saw what Blaster was pointing at. Somehow, Megatron had forced Beatdrop's Dragon Scouter symbol to be shown for all to see. This was not good.

"Bumblebee; take the children back to Jasper and report back here immediately." Optimus ordered. Ratchet could hear the serious tone in Optimus voice, a tone that he rarely used. Ratchet knew that, once Bumblebee got back, his promise to the Dragon Scouters would be put to the test.

* * *

**Authoress: Well, since I have banned everybot else during this. *chuckles evilly* MUHAHAHAHAHAHA!**

* * *

**AN: Uh-oh. It looks like Beatdrop is going to be facing some trouble from the bots. Next chapter should be very interesting. We might even stop by and see the other Scouters again. Until then, though, I guess I should say that you all are awesome and please drop a review! =)**


	10. Interrogation? Just Try

**Disclaimer: See previous chapters.**

* * *

**Beatdrop: Oh I am going to have fun.**

**Ratchet: Have fun? You have been exposed and are about to be interrogated! How can that be fun.**

**Authoress: Ratchet, you have no idea what Beatdrop is capable of.**

**Raf: So, he is going to be ok, right?**

**Authoress: *smirks* I make no promises.**

* * *

Ch. 9: Interrogation? Just Try

Raf was filled with worry as 'Bee drove him home. They had already dropped off Miko and Jack and now 'Bee was driving him home. He wanted to help Beatdrop but he had to keep his promise to Beatdrop and the Scouters. It had never been so hard for him to keep a promise then it was right then. If he could, he would tell Bumblebee everything that happened when he was lost in the canyon and have him go back and stop the 'Bots from doing whatever they had planned for Beatdrop. But, he couldn't.

"Hey 'Bee, I can walk from here. You had better get back to base and help the others." Raf said when they were a couple of blocks away from his house. He didn't want to stay with 'Bee any longer just in case he blew the Scouters' covers by accident.

"_Are you sure Raf?_" Bumblebee asked as he pulled by the sidewalk.

Raf nodded and hopped out. "Yeah, I'll be fine. Get back to base."

Raf then watched as Bumblebee drove off. He had a lot to think about and he was hoping that the walk home would help. As he walked, he thought about Beatdrop. He had no idea how the 'Bots were questioning him but he hoped it was nicely. He didn't want Beatdrop being hurt.

"Hey!" Raf yelled when he felt a hand fall on his shoulder. But, when he turned around, he sighed when he saw a familiar face.

"Raf, what is going on? You aren't usually out of the Autobot base until mush later at night." Stormfire asked him.

"Megatron somehow knew how to force Beatdrop's insignia to show and now the 'Bots are questioning him." Raf answered. Maybe the other Dragon Scouters could help him help Beatdrop.

Stormfire nodded but Raf could see his worried look. "Come on Raf. Our house is just up ahead. Let's go tell Pandimala and Balm about what is going on."

Raf nodded and followed Stormfire until they were at a house that had been abandoned. He had seen this house up for sale for the past month but it hadn't been sold. Well, at least until now. Now he had to wonder about what had driven them to buy the house in the first place.

When the two of them got inside, Raf saw that Pandimala, as Lizzie, and Balm, as Alice, sitting on the couch. When they walked up though, Lizzie and Alice stood up. "Raf, what are you doing here?" Alice asked.

But, it was Pandimala's question that was more pertinent. "Has something happened to Beatdrop?"

Raf nodded. "Megatron somehow got his insignia to show up and the Autobots are questioning him now."

To his surprise, Pandimala laughed. "Oh how I would lover to be there."

"Why? And how are we going to help Beatdrop?" Raf asked. This was not the reaction he had been expecting.

Pandimala smiled at him. "Raf, Beatdrop is an intelligence operative and we train our operatives ruthlessly to resist all sorts of questioning and to respond to it. Your 'Bots are probably going crazy trying to question him." She then paused and said, "As for how we are going to help him, unfortunately, there is only one option that will work, shy of attacking the Autobot base."

When he saw the looks on their faces, Raf new that the something was pretty big. "What?"

Balm let out a sigh. "Raf, the only way that Pandimala can help Beatdrop is to reveal ourselves to the Decepticons and Autobots."

Raf wasn't sure what to say. He knew how the Dragon Scouters wanted to keep their fighting away from the Autobots and Decepticons but, now, it looked like Megatron had forced their hands. "How?"

Pandimala sighed. "Well, there is only one thing that I can think of that will bring the Autobots and Decepticons together. We are going to use some of our energon supply and lure them with it."

Raf nodded but couldn't hold back a yawn. He looked to see Balm smiling at him. "I think we need to get Raf home. You look exhausted Raf."

Raf nodded and said, "A little."

Balm motioned with her hand for Raf to come over. He nodded and Balm said, "Pandimala, I am going to walk Raf home. I'll be back soon." Pandimala nodded and Raf followed Balm out of the house.

* * *

"Hm, let me see...oh yes. I have no idea what you are talking about." Beatdrop answered smoothly. For the past cycle, they had been asking him constantly asking him where he got his insignia. Of course, he couldn't tell them that, no matter how much they glared. Actually, their glares looked hilarious. Plus, he wouldn't tell them anyways if he could, they hadn't asked nicely.

"We are done playing your stupid game Beatdrop. Now, tell us where you received that symbol." Prowl ordered.

Yeah, because ordering him for the hundredth time was going to make him quiver and tell them. "You know, this place is really dreary. You should add a splash of orange to the walls. It will do wonders for this dreary place." Beatdrop was enjoying this greatly. Though, now that he thought about it, orange would do wonders for the place.

Jazz glared at him. "Fine. Can you tell us why you are here?"

"You brought me here." He answered and, honestly, that was the truth. He had not been meant to make contact with the Autobots or Decepticons before Soundbite and the other Virons ambushed him. The only reason that he was at the Autobot base was because they had brought him there to fix him. Not that he was ungrateful, but he still hadn't been trying to come.

"Did you have an ulterior motive?" Optimus asked him with a stern voice.

Beatdrop stayed silent. Honestly, he was tired of answering questions. But, after some thought, he realized that they would think that he did have an ulterior motive. "No."

"Finally, a straight answer!" Blaster said in exasperation.

Beatdrop smirked, messing with these bots was too much fun. "Man, I guess I have to step up my game some."

Almost every single faceplate in the room fell at that, except for Ratchet's. Beatdrop knew that Ratchet was having problems watching him get interrogated when the truth would stop it all. He had to get a message to him...but how?

"You shouldn't mess with us Beatdrop. We have you far outnumbered and you have cuffs on." Bulkhead stated while taking out his wrecking ball.

Beatdrop snorted at that. "Seriously? You think you have me at a disadvantage? I've been through worse and fought off more powerful bots in worse conditions." While the more powerful might be bending the truth slightly when it came to Prime, he had definitely escaped worse with the Virons. He then winced. His side was irratating him again and it was bothering him.

"Stand down Bulkhead." Optimus said before turning to Beatdrop. "Beatdrop, did you come in the escape pod that landed on this planet four days ago?"

While Optimus was asking him that, Beatdrop had run a self diagnostic and mentally shuddered when he saw that the weld on his side had reopened and he knew that he needed it fixed. "How about this Prime, I'll make you a deal," Beatdrop started with a hiss. He was starting to get in a foul mood because of his injury. "I will answer your question if, after I do, you allow your medic to re-fix my weld that has come undone thanks to Bulkhead slamming that wrecking ball into me earlier."

All of the Autobots then looked down at his side, which was currently dripping energon. Not badly yet but still, it was hurting like scrap. It was like they didn't believe him when he said that he was in pain. It was kind of insulting.

"Beatdrop," Optimus started with a stern look. "If you answer the question truthfully, then I will allow Ratchet to take you to med bay and fix you."

Beatdrop nodded. He was giving the others up and so he would be fine. "Yes, I came in the escape pod."

"Who attacked your ship?" Jazz asked.

But, Beatdrop shook his helm. "No, I was promised medical attention." And he gave Optimus a pointed glare.

Optimus nodded and said, "Very well. Ratchet, take him to med bay and fix his side."

Ratchet nodded and motioned for him to follow. Beatdrop nodded his thanks at the Prime before following Ratchet to med bay. He had a feeling that he would have to talk to Ratchet a lot about this. Fun.

* * *

Ratchet sighed as he motioned for Beatdrop to sit on the med berth. Why did this fragging mech have to put him through this? Did he do something to deserve this scrap? "Lay down and I can get to work on your injury." Ratchet ordered.

He was glad that Beatdrop nodded and listened. It would do neither of them any good if Beatdrop made a commotion and made it so another bot had to be in here. Thankfully, the med bay was sound proofed, for the most part, and so they could talk in peace as long as they kept it down.

"Thanks for fixing me up again Ratchet." Beatdrop stated and Ratchet could tell that he meant it.

Ratchet nodded. "It is my job. What isn't my job is standing by and watching while you let yourself be hounded for answers that I could give." He really just wanted to tell the rest of the Autobots what the frag was going on instead of letting Beatdrop take the force of the questioning.

"Ratchet, I can't let you yet. The only bot who can give that kind of permission is my leader and I have no idea where she is right now. Plus, your friends are poor at questioning. I am about as ready to give information as the Virons who did this to me are ready to apologize for it and end the war between our two factions." Beatdrop smirked.

Ratchet was shocked. "You mean you aren't even fazed by their questioning?" This bot was tough.

Beatdrop nodded. "It is how we are trained. The Virons are much more vicious then you can imagine and it is going to take A LOT more then what your bots are doing to make me talk." Beatdrop then smirked.

Ratchet simply shook his helm and continued to fix the injury. The Dragon Scouters were an odd group, true, but they had to deal with a lot if what Beatdrop was telling him was true. "What sort of interrogation techniques are we talking about?" Ratchet was curious about what the Virons could possibly do to the Dragon Scouters to make them blow off any kind of interrogation that the Autobots could bring as.

But, from Beatdrop's reaction, he must have asked the wrong kind of question. He was about to take it back when Beatdrop said, "The Virons, well, they don't do anything half way. One of their top torturers loves to cut into bots and either damage something or take something from them. One of our top fighters was captured by the Viron before the Virons truly got powerful. The Viron cut around his optic with a laser scalpel and barely avoided doing permanent damage, and that is one of the nicer interrogation sessions."

Ratchet wasn't sure what to say to that. He had heard of some nasty torture methods that the Decepticons used, and even had to fix some, but that just sounded cruel. The closest that he had seen to that was Bumblebee losing his voice box. Thankfully, Ratchet finished the repairs and said, "Well, that should hold up as long as you don't get into any fights." He then glanced at the doors. "Are you sure you want to go back out there?"

Beatdrop smirked. "Thanks for the fix up Ratchet, and the concern. But, you wouldn't want to ruin my fun would you?"

Ratchet frowned at that but said, "Very well. Come on, you first."

Beatdrop nodded before heading back into the main room. Ratchet knew that this was going to be a long night, for both Beatdrop and themselves. He figured that Beatdrop could beat Miko out in being annoying, and that was saying something.

* * *

Pandimala growled as she paced the main room of their base. After Balm had returned from taking Raf home, the three of them had gone back to their actual bodies and had started to think of how exactly they were going to introduce themselves to the other two factions. While they had told Raf the general idea, Pandimala knew that they would have to do much, much more if they wanted to leave a lasting impression.

Beatdrop. He was another factor. Pandimala wanted him to be there when they were unveiled. Hopefully, he would be able to convince the Autobots to allow him to come with. He was the reason that they were revealing themselves, though Pandimala could not place the blame on him. Instead, she blamed the Virons. They forced their servos.

"Pandimala, could you stop pacing? You are giving me a helm ache." Stormfire asked.

Pandimala nodded. "Sorry Storm. You know I get nervous when we are making one of these plans. Plus, with the news that Beatdrop has been compromised, I am not sure how much time we have before we won't be able to help him. We all know that Beatdrop won't say a word to the Autobots about us and that is going to hurt him while he is there."

The other two nodded. "Pandimala," Balm started. "I doubt that the Autobots would hurt him. It is against their code, as long as Beatdrop isn't physically hurting them."

Pandimala smiled at her friend. "I know Balm. But, I still want him out of there. He is going to drive them insane if we don't."

Balm let out a laugh at that. "Ah, now that makes more sense. Beatdrop can be a little, excessive when it comes to misdirection."

Pandimala nodded and gave a small smile. Beatdrop was one of a kind. One click, he would be talking your audio receptors off and the next he could be so quiet that you would think that your audio receptors went out. Plus, he always loved teasing bots.

"Yeah, remember when we were on that fighting planet, War World? Mongul couldn't give Beatdrop back to us fast enough. I heard that organic really did go off the deep end after that." Stormfire remarked.

Yep, Beatdrop had a way with words that could get him into trouble. But, sometimes, those words could help him. Pandimala should know. She still remembered the first day that she had met him.

Flashback

_Pandimala sighed as she walked through the once beautiful Crystal Gardens, now only rubble on the ground. Energon stained the ground around her and Pandimala was furious. This was a special place to many bots, from all factions, and yet the Autobots and Decepticons had not hesitated in allowing its destruction while fighting the other. She was furious. The reason she was out was because she was seeing if there was anything that could be salvaged._

"_Pandimala, where are you? I thought that you were supposed to be with your brother and Tana?" The voice of her lead intelligence officer, Remcy, said through her comm. link. _

_Panidmala sighed. "I just thought I would detour to the Crystal Gardens to see if I could find anything that we can use."_

"_Pandimala are you serious? There was just an attack there and you are there by yourself!" Remcy fussed._

_But, Pandimala knew what she was doing. "I'm fine Remcy. My brother and Tana know that I am doing this and have agreed to meet me at our designated coordinates." She then heard something move under some rubble. "Hang on Remcy."_

_He shut up right away. Thankfully, he knew when she was in a serious situation. Walking up to the piece of rubble, Pandimala aimed her cannons at it, for caution, and then grabbed the side of the rubble with both of her servos. Once she lifted it up, though, she was not ready for the blast of pure sound to slam into her and throw her across the Gardens. Her first thought was worry if she had landed on any of the broken crystals but, thankfully, they were fine._

_Before she could get her next thought out, though, she felt a weight on her chassis and she glanced in front of her in a small panic. _

"_What do you want?" The strange mech snarled. Pandimala could see that he was a neutral and that he was on the defensive. _

_So, knowing this, she took things calmly. "My name is Pandimala and I came here to see if there was anything that could be salvaged from this massacre that my troops could use."_

_But, the mech seemed angered by her statement. "I don't care whether you are an Autobot or Decepticon, this attack shouldn't have happened. These gardens were a place of peace for many of us and it gave us hope for a bright future. But, now, you and whoever you were fighting have destroyed it."_

_Scrap. He thought that she was a 'Bot or 'Con. She had to fix that thinking before she said anything else. "Whoever you are, you misunderstand. I am neither an Autobot or a Decepticon."_

_The mech looked taken aback by that. "But, you said your troops,"_

"_That doesn't mean I am an Autobot or Decepticon. I am a the leader of a faction called the Dragon Scouters and our one main goal is the security of our homeworld and to try and make sure that the Autobots, Decepticons, and our enemies, the Virons, don't destroy anymore then they have." While Pandimala didn't normally tell this right off to bots, this time felt different. This mech had an air around him that was different, unique. It was something that she tried to find in all of her troops, her family._

_The mech seemed to think about that for a click. "You are telling the truth; aren't you?" He finally asked._

_Pandimala nodded. "Yes, and I am as angered as you are that this place was destroyed." She then motioned to his pede, which was still planted on his chestplate, before saying, "Could you kindly take your pede off of my chestplate now? And who are you?"_

_The mech nodded and took his pede off before helping her up. Once he did, he said, "The name is Beatdrop."_

_Pandimala smiled and asked, "Beatdrop, I know that this is quick to ask, but would you like to join the Dragon Scouters? Like I said, our goal is the preservation of our home world and the protection of the rights of all sentient beings."_

_The mech seemed to think about that before nodding. "I believe that you are right. I will join you."_

_Pandimala nodded and was about to shake his servo when her wings picked up some movement behind them. "Dragon Scouters, stand down. Beatdrop here is a friend." Tana and her brother then walked out, cautiously, and they were all introduced._

End of Flashback

And that was how she had met Beatdrop and how he came to become a Dragon Scouter. Actually, that memory gave her an idea. "Balm, Stormfire; I think I know what to do."

* * *

**Beatdrop: *chuckles* This is so much fun.**

**Ratchet: For you maybe, but the other bots are not finding your antics funny.**

**Beatdrop: I find them perfect.**

**Authoress: I find them down right hilarious!**

* * *

**AN: And her is another exciting chapter. I know I at least made a reference to G1 and one reference to something not Transformers. Wonder if you all can find them? Anyways, I hope you all like this. Next chapter is going to be very exciting so I would stay tuned. Until then, please drop a review off before you leave, would you? =D**


	11. Prepare for Surgery

**Disclaimer: I only own my OCs.**

* * *

**Beatdrop: I'm going insane.**

**Raf: Then let us tell the 'Bots about you so they will let you out.**

**Ratchet: Yes, don't let yourself suffer anymore.**

**Beatdrop: I can't. I have protocol to follow...fragging protocol.**

**Authoress: And that is why I brought the popcorn.**

* * *

**AN: I also do not own any songs used. This chapter, I use; Rasputin from Just Dance 2, Shut Up and Drive by Rihanna, In the Ayer by Flo Rida, and Pop, Lock, and Drop it by Huey.**

* * *

Ch. 10: Prepare for Surgery

Beatdrop sighed as he sat in his cell. After hours of listening to the Autobots question him incessantly, he had decided to force himself into recharge. They were getting repetitive in their questioning anyways. But, when he had woke up, he had found himself in the confinement area that they called a cell. The first thing that he had done was check the strength of the bars. Weak. He could break out of there anytime he wanted. But, he had to wait. He couldn't go off and not let Pandimala know where he was. She might be planning his escape and so he had to wait. And, unfortunately, he didn't have much in the way of patience.

"Why is this cell so boring?" He muttered before going to the cell gate. "Can you bots put on some music? It is boring as scrap down here!"

Beatdrop jumped when a speaker in the hall crackled to life. "Answer all our questions and we will play some music for you." He heard Optimus say.

Beatdrop scoffed at that. "You want to know my answer to that Prime? Kiss my aft!" He then paced the cell. He had to get out. This lack of music was killing him. KILLING HIM! But, that was when the most perfect idea came to his mind. If the Autobots could hear him, then they would be able to hear his music. He gave them the chance to control the volume of the song and the kind but now it was in his field. Thankfully had had a projector that he used for deceiving his enemies with him and he had found a certain game of the humans' that he just loved. Plus, there was one song on there that he knew would annoy the Autobots to scrap. It would also give them some exercise as well.

Taking out his projector, he faced it to the wall and turned it on. Thankfully, he had programmed the game to make himself the remote. Otherwise, he would be in a bind. When the music started, Beatdrop smirked and got into position. When the beat started going, Beatdrop smiled. Then, he started the dancing. The clapping was simple but he felt energy rush through his systems when the more difficult maneuvers started. They tested his dexterity and this game also challenged his reaction. Well, the violin part was just fun.

**There lived a certain man in Russia long ago**

**He was big and strong, in his eyes a flaming glow**

**Most people looked at him with terror and with fear**

**But to Moscow chicks he was such a lovely dear**

**He could preach the bible like a preacher**

**Full of ecstasy and fire**

**But he also was the kind of teacher**

**Women would desire**

Beatdrop laughed and was about ready to go to the next part when he heard pedesteps come down the hall. Not wanting his projector taken away, Beatdrop quickly put it back in his subspace and sat on the floor, acting like nothing had happened. It wasn't long after that Prowl and Optimus stood in front of him.

"What can I do for you mechs on this beautiful day?" Beatdrop asked.

Prowl frowned but Optimus said, "We just received a call from Megatron. He wishes to meet with you again."

Beatdrop frowned at that as the memory of his last encounter with the warlord was still fresh in his processor. He had been tricked and he couldn't stop Megatron from doing a manual force of his insignia. He was in as much a mood to see Megatron as he was to tell the Autobots everything. And that wasn't a very strong yearning.

"Why? Didn't do enough invading during our first talk?" Beatdrop asked. He could still feel the warlords claws underneath his armor, messing with wires.

"He didn't say why but he says that he will blow up a human settlement if you do not come. Also, we have discovered an energon deposit at the same location so there might be a struggle if we don't bring you." Prowl stated. Beatdrop could see that Prowl was glaring at him. Understandably but still, it was rude when they were asking him to go and talk to Megatron again.

"Fine. I assume that some sort of cuffs will be placed on me?" Beatdrop asked.

Optimus nodded. "For everyone's safety." He then brought out a simple pair of cuffs and Beatdrop felt insulted. They were a simple design and they were the easiest to break out of.

"Ok. Let's get this over with." Beatdrop muttered before holding out his servos. It seems that they must also not remember that he has tentacles. Oh well, their loss. Beatdrop slightly winced when the cuffs were snapped into place. Just because they were simple didn't mean they were comfortable.

He then followed the Autobots into the main room and he saw that everybot was staring at him. It made him feel nervous. Did they have to stare? Glancing at the human area, he was at least relieved to see that Raf actually looked worried for him. Looking at Ratchet, the only other living being in the room who knew what he was completely, he saw that Ratchet was worried as well.

"Raf, can you man the ground bridge?" Optimus asked.

Raf nodded. Ratchet, however, asked, "Why?"

Optimus turned to everyone before saying, "I wish for all of us to go just in case the Decepticons attack. We need the energon there and I believe that we can take them."

Unless they had teamed up with the Virons. Beatdrop knew that, if the Decepticons and Virons had teamed up, then the Autobots didn't stand a chance without the Dragon Scouters but he had to find Pandimala first. Hopefully, since he would be out of the base, he could contact her and she could come down and get him out of this mess.

"Well, we had better go see Megatron." Beatdrop sighed. He wanted to get this done with.

The others looked at him with glares but Optimus nodded. "Autobots, roll out!" Raf then opened the bridge and they wall walked through. Beatdrop was in front of the line and was being 'escorted' by Bulkhead and Blaster.

* * *

On the other side, the sun was glaring. Great, they were in the desert again. Out of habit, Beatdrop scanned the area but was surprised when he didn't pick up any energon. That was one of the reasons that Optimus had brought all of the Autobots with him. Obviously, Blaster had done the same because he said, "Optimus there is no energon here. What did we detect?"

Optimus shook his helm. "I'm not sure."

Before anything else could be said, a ground bridge opened up on the other side of the opening they were in. Beatdrop was amazed by the number of Decepticons that came through. When Soundwave came out, Beatdrop felt his spark stop. He didn't want to fight Soundwave. He wasn't sure that he could. Hopefully, a fight wouldn't break out.

"Beatdrop, it is a pleasure to see you again." Megatron began. "I see that the Autobots have treated you hospitably since our last encounter." He then motioned to him. "Come closer Beatdrop."

Beatdrop wasn't going to get in servo reach but he was going to go to the middle. It gave him a better vantage point. Feeling the servos holding his arms drop, Beatdrop took that as a sign that he was allowed to go forward. So, with hesitant steps, Beatdrop walked until he was in the middle of the two factions.

"Beatdrop. Poker Face."

Beatdrop flinched slightly when he heard Pandimala's voice come through the comm. link. He wanted to answer but, since she had said Poker face, he knew that she would do all of the talking.

"What do you want Megatron?" Beatdrop asked.

"I wanted to see if it was true. The faction that bears the insignia you have is supposed to be a myth. Tell me, how much of that is a myth?" Megatron asked.

"Beatdrop, don't tell him anything. Misdirect the question. We are in your special beat boxes on the field. Set you visor to find them. Go in order, starting with Storm. But, don't start until I give the signal. Introduce yourself first when I do though." He could almost see the smirk on Pandimala's faceplate when she said that. He was also glad. They were using the ejector boxes that he had made. The occupant inside the box would be launched when a blast of music would hit the speaker attached to the top and jutted out to the side.

While he turned his visor to the right setting, Beatdrop said, "Hey Megatron, why are you such a bland color? I think that you would look so much better in a white color with some blue markings. It would so bring out the fierceness in your optics. That gray does nothing for you."

Beatdrop smirked when he saw Megatron frown at that. Yep, he still had the touch.

"Optimus, where is the energon?" Megatron asked, obviously not in the mood to deal with him.

"I do not know Megatron. It was gone when we got here."

"Beatdrop, walk over to Stormfire's activator and get ready." Pandimala ordered.

Beatdrop smirked and walked over to the activator. He was hoping that he wouldn't be noticed for a while. But, fate seemed to not be liking him much today. "What are you doing?" The Decepticon the records said was called Dreadwing asked.

All optics turned to him and Beatdrop was trying to think of an excuse. The Autobots were probably thinking that he was trying to sneak away and the 'Cons probably thought that he was trying to do a sneak attack. Well, the 'Cons wouldn't be too wrong if they were guessing that. But, the sneak attack would be awesome.

"Beatdrop, show them the magic." Pandimala stated, giving him clearance to start the party. Oh, this was going to be fun.

* * *

Optimus stared at Beatdrop. He was confused about what the mech was doing. He was sure that Beatdrop was trying to escape but, when he was confronted with that, he seemed calm about it. That wasn't the normal reaction of a bot who was trying to run. They would normally panic.

Laughter coming from Beatdrop had everyone from both sides staring at him in shock. What was he doing?

"You want to know about me? Well, my leader thinks it is time that you all knew what you are dealing with and why we should not be messed with lightly." Beatdrop stated before he said, "My name is Beatdrop and I am an intelligence agent for the Dragon Scouters. We did not come here to attack any of you but our rival faction, the Virons, forced our servos in interaction with you. Before the other day, only two beings who were not apart of the Virons or Dragon Scouter. As far as I know, only one is here now."

Beatdrop then paused for a second. But, after a click, he smirked. "I take that back. There are both here right now, though one really shouldn't be. One who has known about me is Ratchet. He discovered it before I came to beat the scrap out of Starscream. But, to my surprise, he actually knew about the Dragon Scouters long before me. He met us on Cybertron during the fighting, when we were just starting. He met our leader and saved her."

Optimus looked at Ratchet and asked, "Is that true old friend?" He couldn't believe that Ratchet would keep something like that from him.

Ratchet's nod, though, told him that he had. "I promised on my spark, Cybertron, and the Allspark that I would never tell anybot about them. I couldn't break my promise Optimus, no matter how many times I wanted to."

"Don't blame Ratchet for decieving you all." Beatdrop said and Optimus could see that Beatdrop was being serious. "Now, the second being who knows of me and three other Dragon Scouters, as well as some Virons, is here when he should not be. Isn't that right Raf?"

Optimus was shocked when Beatdrop said Rafael's name. Following Beatdrop's gaze, everybot on the field looked up to see Raf, Miko, and Jack standing off to the side. Jack and Miko were glancing at Rafael and Raf was looking like he was in trouble. Optimus turned to Beatdrop and asked, "I assume that you made Rafael make the same promise that Ratchet did? How did he meet you?"

Beatdrop nodded. "To the same extent, yes, we did. When Raf had been left in the desert, you weren't given the full story because of this promise. While he was searching for help, he ran into four of the most vile Virons out there. They were about to step on him when we showed up. The four of us Dragon Scouters had picked up on Viron signals and so we went to confront them. When I saw that Raf was in trouble, I saved him and I, along with the rest of my team mates, fought the Virons off and told Raf not to say anything about us. I'm glad that he was able to keep that."

"You keep mentioning 'us'; were are the rest of your team?" Prowl asked. Optimus was wondering this as well.

Beatdrop let out a laugh. Optimus was curious as to why. "Why, they are here." Beatdrop laughed as everyone looked around. Optimus couldn't tell what was so funny. He couldn't pick up any life signatures. But, he had a feeling that Beatdrop was telling the truth. "Let me call them out. But, of course, I will have to introduce them." He then knelt to the ground and Optimus was curious when he placed his servo on the ground, speaker down.

"What are you doing?" Dreadwing asked with a little annoyance.

Beatdrop's smirk told him that something big was about to happen. "Autobots and Decepticons, allow me to introduce the weapons specialist for the Dragon Scouters. I wouldn't want to be on the end of any of his weapons. Now, arise and fight; Stormfire!"

**Cos I'm 0 to 60 in three point five  
Baby you got the keys-Now shut up and drive!**

Optimus almost jumped in shock when, as soon as the last word was sung out of the hand speakers, the sand exploded and out jumped a pure white jet mech. The mech was just shorter then he was but Optimus could see the power that this mech, Stormfire, had.

* * *

Beatdrop smiled when Stormfire landed next to him. This was going to be fun. "Hey Beat, what took you so long? I was frying my circuits in that box." Yep, really nice to have Stormfire back.

"My servos were tied mech. I couldn't me my normal fast self." Beatdrop responded, showing the cuffs on his servos.

"Why didn't you take them off? Those are the easy ones." Stormfire remarked.

"Well," Beatdrop started, "I was making them feel like I wasn't as dangerous as I really am."

Stormfire nodded and then transformed his servo into a sword before slicing the cuffs in half and then slicing the halves in half. Beatdrop felt relieved to have them off. He didn't like hos the scraped his wrists. "Is there a fight yet?" Stormfire asked him.

Beatdrop laughed. "Not yet Storm. We have to let our playmates out first."

Stormfire smirked. "Oh, I can't wait."

"Will you just get along with this without all of the chatter?" The red Decepticon known as Knockout asked.

Beatdrop smirked. "Of course I may." He then walked to where Pandimala's chamber lay before saying, "Autobots and Decepticons. Our next bot is a formidable opponent on the battlefield as well as the leadership field. She cares for each and every one of us like family and she will not stop hunting you if any of us are injured unnecessarily. She is a pit-bringer to all who cross her path but she is a spark savior to all who earn her respect. Arise and fight; Pandimala, leader of the Dragon Scouters!"

**Alright now stop  
oh, put your hands in the ayer  
it's a stick (a stick up, stick up)  
it's a stick up, just to the ceiling, man **

Beatdrop smiled as the sand right in front of him exploded and Pandimala burst out. Being the second tallest bot out here, she was definitely an intimidating figure. Smiling at her, once she was out, Beatdrop said, "What took you 'Mala? I was getting worried."

Pandimala shook her helm and said, "You knew we would get you out of there. When we heard that your insignia had been forced, I got down here quickly."

Beatdrop nodded and was about to go and let Balm out when a blaster shot threw him away from Pandimala and toward the Autobots. When he got up, he saw that Megatron had shot him. While no one else had moved, Stormfire charged at the Decepticon and was about to tackle him when one of those insecticons tackled him away.. Those two were the only ones who were fighting. It seemed like Megatron and Pandimala were testing out whose bot would last longer. Beatdrop knew that Stormfire was a great fighter but he wasn't sure how he would last against an insecticon. The Dragon Scouters hadn't had much chance to fight against one of the bugs and he wasn't sure if Stormfire had been able to. But, it looked like they were going to find out.

* * *

Knockout stared at the bug fight the white jet. This was only interesting because he wanted to see if this jet could beat a bug by himself. That Scouter, Beatdrop, had introduced the mech Stormfire as their weapons specialist and Knockout wanted to see if he was as good as most weapons specialists were at combat.

From how the fight was going so far, Stormfire was showing why he was the weapons specialist. The mech was dodging the insecticon like he was born to and, to Knockout's utter joy, was beating the scrap out of the bug. He hated how the things would go around and brag like no other. First, Hardshell was offed by the human femme, Miko, and now this one was getting its aft handed to it by this jet mech.

But, what Knockout hadn't expected was a second bug to get involved and blindside Stormfire. The mech hadn't known what was coming until it was too late. As Stormfire rolled across the ground, Knockout heard a growl come from the Dragon Scouters and saw that Pandimala was holding Beatdrop back. She then seemed to whisper something to him and Knockout grew worried when Beatdrop smirked and nodded before walking over to a specific area of sand.

"Megatron." Pandimala started, gaining everybot's attention except for the bots fighting. "If you wish to fight my soldier with two of your troops, then I request that the fourth and final member of our group here be allowed to join Stormfire."

The fighting was still going down and, to Knockout, it wasn't looking good for Stormfire. Whoever this fourth bot was must be extremely capable of evening the odds.

"And what sort of occupation does this final bot hold?" Megatron asked. Knockout was guessing that Megatron didn't want another capable soldier to come out of where he was hiding.

Pandimala let out a laugh. "She is a medic."

Knockout was failing to see what was so funny. A medic, and a femme at that, would barely be any help to Stormfire against the bugs. Pandimala was dooming whoever the medic was.

Megatron laughed. "A femme medic? Well, I won't stop you."

"Pandimala, she changed her song." Beatdrop informed his leader. Knockout could swear he heard fear in his voice.

"I don't blame her." The leader responded. "Well let her out, and Beatdrop;"

"Yeah?" Beatdrop asked.

Pandimala smiled. "Back up quickly. She's in one of her moods."

Beatdrop nodded and placed his servo to the ground. "Autobots and Decepticons. This femme is a miracle worker in her field. But, that doesn't mean that she is weak. I wouldn't want to be the poor fool who gets her cross. Now, medic for the Dragon Scouters, arise, and fight!"

**Toot that thang up mami make it roll  
Once you pop pop lock it for me girl get low  
If your mama gave it to you baby girl let it show  
Once you pop lock drop it for me maybe we can roll (oh)**

Instead of exploding directly up out of the sand, though the sand did explode, the femme flipped out and launched at one of the bugs. The femme was a blur to him and he couldn't make out any distinguishing features. She was on the bug before he knew what hit him and she crawled up to his helm. Putting her digits underneath the bugs neck, the femme started to pull.

"Prepare for surgery!"

Knockout felt his spark stop. As the femme ripped the bugs helm of, a memory from the past crepte in.

Flashback

_Knockout was worried when Ratchet left to go see Orion Pax after said archivist's visit with Megatron and the council. Something was wrong and he could feel it._

"_Knockout, you need to stop worrying. I can feel it from clear over here." The femme said as she walked up to him._

"_Sorry. I'm just worried. You already know that, if a war does break out, that I am going to side with Megatron and his Decepticons." Knockout stated. He hated saying it to her but he didn't want her to find out from somebot else later._

"_I know." The femme sighed._

"_How?" He had kept it from her almost like it was a religion. How did she know?_

_The femme let out a soft laugh. "Well, besides the fact that Megatron is for the caste system being removed, I have been hearing you tune into his speeches. The volume was just a little to loud."_

"_Scrap." Knockout sighed. "You also know that Ratchet will probably side with the council?"_

"_I know that he will go with Orion Pax, whichever side that may be." The femme responded. Knockout knew that she was right, but, more then likely, their mentor and himself would end up on opposite sides of the ever looming war. _

"_I know you won't choose a side in this war but what would your battle call be if you did?" Knockout asked, trying to lighten the mood, again._

_The femme realized this and smiled. "Oh, I have already thought of that." Knockout jumped back slightly in shock when she brought out a saw that was identical to his own. "Prepare for surgery!"_

_Knockout laughed at that. "That's good. I'm going to have to remember that one."_

_But, the femme shook her helm and smirked. "Not until I offline K.O."_

End of flashback

When his friend had offlined, he had taken to saying her phrase as a memorial to her. But, now he was sure that he was staring at a ghost. He had to be. The femme in front of him was the same femme who he had worked with alongside Ratchet all those stellar cycles ago. There was only one thing he could say.

"Balm?"

* * *

**Authoress: That was fun!**

**Beatdrop: Yeah! I'm not alone!**

**Pandimala: It is nice to be here with you as well Beatdrop.**

**Raf: But I was here.**

**Ratchet: And so was I.**

**Beatdrop: I mean I am not the only Dragon Scouter.**

**Raf and Ratchet: Oh.**

* * *

**AN: And we have another chapter! Looks like Knockout got more then he bargained for in this fight. This is going to be a lot of fun and I can't wait for the next chapter! Until then though, please drop a review!**


	12. Meetings of the Present and Past

**Disclaimer: I only own my OCs.**

* * *

**Pandimala: This should be interesting.**

**Stormfire: Definitely. We just have to wait. **

**Balm: *sighs* This is just going to be a big helm ache for me. I can feel it.**

**Authoress: Don't think so badly about this. **

* * *

Ch. 11: Meetings of the Present and Past

Ratchet couldn't tell that his spark was beating. All that he felt was shock. There, standing in front of him, was Balm. She couldn't be alive. He remembered the solar cycle that he had found out like it was only a few clicks ago.

Flashback

_Ratchet walked through the rubble of Paradar, a small settlement in-between Kaon and Iacon. It was technically unnamed but he had met enough of the citizens to know what they called it. The fighting from both sides of the war had been brutal and it had left the settlement decimated. He had been ordered by his superior to come and see if there were any survivors._

_Worry was also on his processor as he searched the rubble. Ever since the war had broken out, Ratchet had been sure to keep tabs on his previous two apprentices. Knockout, he knew, was rising in the Decepticon ranks as a medic. Balm, his femme apprentice, was last seen around this area and that was what was worrying him._

_After a few cycles of searching and not finding anybot online, Ratchet sighed and was about to return to his unit when he caught some movement in the corner of his optic. Hoping that it was a bot who was still online and not some shifting debris, Ratchet walked over to it and moved a piece of building that was in the way. When it was gone, though, he stared in shock. Sitting there in front of him was a triple changer femme. She was black with lime green markings and optics. _

_But, he could see right away that she was heavily damaged. Besides the many scrapes that she showed on her chassis, her wings were damaged and in need of repairs and her right arm was dangling off by a few wires and lines. He knew that she needed to be worked on right away._

"_Can you hear me?" Ratchet asked the femme as he knelt in front of her and started to make repairs to her arm._

_It took a few clicks, but the femme finally answered. "You bet doc." She then winced from something he was repairing before saying, "What, happened?"_

_He figured that she would ask that soon. "You were caught in a fight between the middle of the Autobots and Decepticons fighting for this ground."_

"_More destruction caused by this fragging war." The femme sighed as he continued his work. She then turned to him. "Can you promise me to never report anything that goes on here this solar cycle on Cybertron, the Allspark, and your own spark?"_

_Ratchet paused in his work and thought about that. This femme seemed to have information and was willing to share it with him. But, he was not allowed to tell anybot else about this. After weighing the effects of both options, Ratchet nodded. "Very well. I promise on Cybertron, the Allspark, and my spark that I will never divulge of anything that happens this solar cycle."_

_To his surprise, the femme smiled. "There are more factions in this war then the Autobots and Decepticons. I know of at least two more. The Virons, and the Dragon Scouters. My designation is Pandimala and I am the leader of the Dragon Scouters. I was here along with some of my troops giving care to some neutrals when the attack started. My troops and I tried to save the neutrals but the attack was quick and fierce." Pandimala then winced when he started work on her wings._

"_May I continue?" Ratchet asked. The femme seemed to not want to stay there and, from what she had said, he understood that completely._

_He was surprised, though, when she shook her helm and stood up. "No, I must return to my troops." She then paused and asked, "What is your designation?"_

_He figured he could give her that much so he said, "I'm Ratchet and I am a field medic for the Autobots." The femme nodded and turned to leave. But, before she could, he had a question. "Did you know any of the bots here?"_

_When her faceplate turned morbid, he regretted asking. Maybe she had lost a loved one. He almost feared what she was going to say. "I had a medic friend here. She recently joined us and has been a huge help. She then paused. "Her designation was Balm." The leader then turned and left._

_Ratchet could only stare in shock as the leader disappeared. His apprentice, offlined by an attack caused by both the Autobots and Decepticons._

End of Flashback

Once his previous apprentice was finished ripping the helms off of the two insecticons who were attacking the white jet mech, Ratchet took a step forward. "Balm?" Ratchet asked in shock.

* * *

When Balm heard her name from both sides, she glanced and was shocked to see both Knockout and Ratchet there. Why was her luck so wonderfully terrible that she would be reunited with both at the same time? She loved that they were still online and that they remembered her but now she knew that this situation was going to become very awkward for them all. Not her on half, because she had told Pandimala, Stormfire, and Beatdrop everything about her past with them, but it would be awkward for them because she was sure that they had both thought her offline. That was the point of Pandimala getting hurt in the first place.

"Ratchet? Knockout?" Balm asked as she took a few steps forward.

But, before she could go any further, a giant wave of sound slammed into her and threw her against the canyon wall.

"Balm!" She heard three mech voices yell as she struggled to get up.

Balm knew exactly who did it and snarled as she dodged his follow up attack. "Virons." Balm hissed as the four who were presently on Earth walked out of the canyon.

At her hiss, everybot turned to the canyon and the other Dragon Scouters prepped their weapons. She could tell that the Autobots and Decepticons had no idea what was going on. Well, Raf looked like he knew because he had seen them fight before.

"Ah, I thought I heard the squeak of Dragon Scouter voices." Soundbite stated as the four of them stopped in front of the Decepticons, facing the Dragon Scouters.

Pandimala hissed and said, "Soundbite keep your toxic glossa in your mouth."

Contagion smirked. "Oh Pandimala. I am glad that you haven't changed. It will make offlining you that much better."

Balm the walked next to Stormfire and held his arm. "I wouldn't now Contagion. We are in a fighting mood right now and you know that we will win. Plus," Stormfire started. "It looks like the Decepticons are retreating."

Balm looked at the Decepticon side and noticed a ground bridge open behind the Decepticons. Most of the 'Cons had made it through, but Balm noticed that Knockout and Soundwave paused. Balm stared at Knockout and gave him a small smile. She missed him and wanted him to know that. He gave one of his famous smiles back and nodded before running through the bridge with Soundwave.

"Looks like it is you four against both my forces and that of the Autobots." Pandimala stated, holding one of her broadswords tightly in her servo.

Contagion narrowed his optics. "You may have won this round Pandimala, but I will have the last laugh."

Balm was surprised when another ground bridge opened up behind the Virons. They already had one set up? She then glared at them as they disappeared. Once they were all gone, the four of them turned to the Autobots. When Balm locked optics with Ratchet, she was not going to stay in formation.

"Ratchet!" Balm yelled in excitement as she ran up to her old teacher and hugged him. She didn't care when she heard the sound of blasters charging when she did because she had missed her teacher and nothing was going to stop her reunion.

When she let go and backed up, she saw that Ratchet looked very confused. "Balm, how are you? I mean, she said," He started before addressing Pandimala, "You said that she was offline."

Pandimala nodded and walked up to them. Balm knew that the blasters weren't worrying Pandimala either. They could dodge them quickly enough and Pandimala probably wanted to explain her actions. "I did, and it was for good reason. At the time, Balm had been threatened by a group of neutrals who were planning on joining the Decepticons. I had to have it so she offlined. So, when we heard that there was to be an attack on Paradar, we set our plan into motion. I would get injured and, when the Autobots sent out their medical team to find any survivors, I would tell the bot or bots who found me that a friend of mine had offlined. I had no idea it would be you, her old teacher."

"You told me so that word would eventually reach the Decepticons and then the neutrals who were going to join would think that she was offline and wouldn't lead the Decepticons to your doorstep." Ratchet stated in realization.

Balm nodded. "When 'Mala told me that you had been the one who found her, I was glad that you were first to know. I wouldn't want you hearing from another source and maybe getting the story wrong."

Ratchet nodded. "I'm just glad that you are still online."

Balm nodded and was about to say something when the rest of the Autobots walked forward and they seemed to be trying to figure out if they were trustworthy. What had Beatdrop been doing his whole time with the Autobots, pulling pranks?

"My name is Optimus Prime. Thanks to Beatdrop, we know your designations and I would like to know if you mean humanity or the Autobots any harm?" Optimus looked hesitant but why she had no idea.

Balm glanced up at Pandimala as her leader said, "The Dragon Scouters do not mean harm to humanity. We will not harm the Autobots as long as you do not harm any of us." Frag, even though Balm knew Pandimala hated talking like that, her leader was still very good at speaking politically.

* * *

Beatdrop shook his helm as the Autobots processed Pandimala's answer. They couldn't expect more. Pandimala was not going to promise not to hurt any Autobots. She had her troops to look after and if an Autobot hurt them, then she would bring her full force down upon them. The Dragon Scouters were a family and they stuck together through everything.

Finally, though, Optimus nodded. "Very well. Why was Beatdrop in our base?"

Beatdrop sighed. Why did they have to repeat questions? It was annoying, really, but he figured that they must want to be sure of their answer. "No, I already told you, I did not have an ulterior motive for you bringing me to your base. I wasn't even trying to get to your base. The only reason that I ended up there was that I was injured from a Viron attack. Otherwise, I would have not been seen by you all yet...hopefully." Beatdrop smirked at the last part. He couldn't control what happened if he was caught while on patrol.

Beatdrop winced when he felt a helm slap. Glancing over at Pandimala, he saw the knowing look in her optics. "Beatdrop, you would not have tried to be seen to tease the Autobots." She then sighed. "Well, may I have permission to bring myself and my troops to your base for some repairs?" She addressed Optimus as she asked that.

He nodded. "Very well. We may discuss more of our arrangement when we return to our base." He then turned to the humans still watching. "Rafael, can you open a ground bridge from here?"

Beatdrop was surprised when Raf pulled out his laptop. How did he miss that? Anyways, Raf then typed a few things into his laptop before a ground bridge opened. That kid was seriously smart.

Beatdrop walked up to the humans and held out a servo. Jack seemed hesitant but Miko and Raf hopped on. After a few nano-clicks, Jack followed. Beatdrop then walked over to the others before walking into the ground bridge. This was going to be a very interesting visit and there were sure to be some surprises. Once they were inside, Beatdrop put the humans in their area before walking over to Balm. "Hey Balm, I got a couple of bumps. Could you look me over?"

Balm raised an optic ridge and shook her helm. "Sorry Beat, you know my rule. If Storm is more hurt, then he gets treated first, no questions asked."

"But Balm!" Beatdrop whined. He wanted to get fixed so he could mess with the Autobots some more. "YEOW!" Beatdrop yelled as a wrench slammed into the middle of his helm. He rubbed the spot with a glare before saying, "Fine." He then walked to the side.

"Balm, why is your rule that?" Ratchet asked as he moved toward them. "Oh, and nice shot with the wrench. Your aim has almost gotten as well as mine. I lost my wrenches on the way here."

Beatdrop let out a sharp, but friendly, laugh at that. "Great, so you taught her how to throw that wrench? I think I am going to," Beatdrop ducked as another wrench zoomed by his helm.

"You bet he did." Balm smirked before turning to Ratchet.

But, before she could answer, Stormfire sat in between them before saying, "It is just one of the perks that I get to being bonded to this beautiful medic."

Beatdrop loved the look on Ratchet's faceplate when Stormfire stated that. He was also loving the shy look on Balm's face when Stormfire winked at her.

Of course, Ratchet's yell of shock was even better.

"YOU'RE BONDED?"

* * *

Soundwave typed away at the console in front of him. It was one of the things that helped him calm his processor. There wasn't much that got him distracted from his work but, Beatdrop was one of them. The mech had disappeared from his existence so long ago and now, he was back and Soundwave was torn between his loyalty to Megatron and a yearning to talk with Beatdrop and ask him how he was still online.

"Soundwave," Megatron stated, drawing him from his thoughts, "open a communication with the Virons using the line that Soundbite used to contact us with."

Soundwave nodded and opened the link. It did not take long for the Virons to answer. "Megatron, I figured that you would be calling after our display in the canyon."

Soundwave held back a growl as he heard that voice through the connection. He and Beatdrop had known Soundbite since they were younglings in Kaon. Soundbite, along with the Autobot known as Blaster, used to give them trouble.

Flashback

"_Beatdrop wait up!" Soundwave yelled after his friends as they walked home together. Soundwave's creators had asked them to run to the local market and pick up some energon for the next few months._

_Beatdrop turned around and let out a smile and laugh before saying, "Come on 'Wave, I want to get back to your place so we can have some of those energon goodies that your carrier made early this solar cycle." Beatdrop then turned when he ran into Soundbite. Blaster was there next to him._

"_Hey Blaster, look who we have here?" Soundbite asked. He then shoved Beatdrop back._

_Soundwave stepped up next to his friend. "Leave us alone you two."_

_Blaster let out a laugh. "Oh, they actually think that they can tell us what to do Soundbite. What should we do to teach them better?"_

_Soundbite smirked and brought out his sword before saying, "Well Blaster, since we have our mods and they have yet to get any, I think we should show them that we are better advanced then their lot."_

_Soundwave and Beatdrop looked at each other with panicked looks. They couldn't stop them if they tried. But, to their surprise, Blaster was just as shocked as they were. "Soundbite, we can't attack them with our weapons. That'll damage them. This isn't like just ruffing them up a bit like we planned." Blaster stated while trying to intervene._

_Soundbite shook his helm and shoved Blaster out of the way. "If you won't help me then our partnership is over. Good luck keeping staying safe around here without me." Blaster hit a wall and was knocked out cold. He then turned to them. "Now, it's time to teach you your lesson." He then lunged._

_Soundwave jumped when Beatdrop jumped in front of him and, to his surprise, strange tentacle appendages came out of Beatdrop's back and stopped Soundbite's blade. "Leave us alone!" Beatdrop yelled before shoving Soundbite back._

_Soundbite shook his helm before taking out a blaster and aiming it at Beatdrop. "You little piece of scrap. I'll teach you to mess with me."_

_Soundwave need to save his friend and quickly. Just as Soundbite fired, Soundwave felt similar tentacles as Beatdrop's come out of his back and so he pulled his friend away from the blast with them. "Beat, are you ok?" Soundwave asked his friend._

_Beatdrop nodded. "Yeah. Thanks 'Wave." _

_The two then turned their attentions back to Soundbite. "Now, get out of here Soundbite. Two against one is not very great odds for you." Beatdrop stated._

_Soundbite growled. "I can take the two of you on no problem."_

"_Then how about three of us?"_

_Soundwave and Beatdrop were surprised when Blaster stepped next to them, blaster out and aimed at Soundbite. Soundbite, on his part, narrowed his optics at Blaster. "You will pay for this." The cowardly mech then ran away._

_From that day on, Blaster and the two of them became friends and watched each others backs._

End of Flashback

"I wish to propose an alliance between the Decepticons and the Virons." Megatron announced.

Oh scrap. That couldn't happen. If it did, then Soundwave would have to deal with Soundbite and he wasn't sure if he had the patience to do that. And, after dealing with Starscream's incessant talking, he had a lot of patience saved up.

"That could be an advantage to us. Meet us at the location of our last encounter and we will solidify our alliance there." Contagion stated before the connection went dark.

"Soundwave, open a ground bridge to our previous coordinates." Megatron ordered.

Soundwave nodded and opened the bridge. But, as his leader stepped through it, Soundwave had a feeling that this alliance would not help the Decepticon cause, or his sanity.

* * *

**Beatdrop: Yeah we are going to have a party!**

**Ratchet: *stares at Balm in shock***

**Balm: *sighs* *helm slaps Ratchet* It's not that surprising Ratchet.**

**Authoress: To him it is.**

* * *

**AN: And here is another great chapter to this story! Ratchet sure got a shock. I guess he thought that Balm wouldn't find a mate. This was very fun and I hope that the next chapter will be even more exciting! Until next we meet though, please drop a review!**


	13. Alliances

**Disclaimer: I only own my OCs.**

* * *

**Beatdrop: Hey, we are getting an update!**

**Authoress: Well, I couldn't just leave you all to perish, could I? *evil smirk***

**Raf: Well, I'm just thankful that you updated.**

**Authoress: *nice smile* You're welcome Raf. *another thought comes* Hey bots, we need to sing a happy birthday to my dear friend The Almighty Pickle Lord XD!**

**All bots: *sing happy birthday* **

**Beatdrop: *to Pickle Lord* Hey, I snuck this from Authoress. It is a free information ticket. You can ask her anything you want about this story and she will tell you. But it is only for one question, use it wisely.**

**Authoress: *Yells* Beatdrop, where is that information ticket at?**

**Beatdrop: *gulps* *looks at Pickle Lord* I got to go. Use it well. *Sprints away because something scarier then Unicron is on his aft***

* * *

Ch. 12: Alliances

Pandimala sighed as Ratchet started to bombard poor Balm with questions about how she ended up bonded and so forth. It reminded her just how many bots were separated by this war and how they didn't even know if some were alive. But, she had to think positive. At least Ratchet knew Balm was alive and well and Balm knew that Ratchet and Knockout were both online. But, Pandimala knew that would be a problem for her CMO. She would be torn between her tutor and her fellow past apprentice. Pandimala knew that she would have to be careful when sending Balm out when the Decepticons were nearby.

Speaking of the 'Cons and her bots, Pandimala had been surprised to see that Soundwave was online. She remembered when, after hearing about the mech's supposed offlining, that Beatdrop had been very moody and the soon offlining of the femme who was his best friend afterwords had torn Beatdrop apart. It had taken Remcy a few stellar cycles to get Beatdrop back to the way he was now. Seeing Soundwave must have been a glorious sight for her bot and she was happy to know that something good had come out of Beatdrop being brought into Autobot care. But, she also knew that Beatdrop wanted to meet up with the Decepticon third-in-command again and knew that she might have to help arrange it. Beatdrop knew how to give out information and would protect the Autobot's location from the Decepticons during his talk with his long lost friend.

"Pandimala?"

Pandimala turned at the Prime's voice and saw that he was standing behind her. "Yes Optimus?"

He motioned to her bots before asking, "What do you plan on doing now that we know of you and the Virons?"

Pandimala sighed. This thought had been wracking her processor ever since she had learned that there were Autobots and Decepticons on Earth. The probability of them being found out had been too high for her not to. But, that didn't mean that she hadn't dove into the situation seriously. While they did have a base, she knew that they would be at a tactile disadvantage, both the Autobots and Dragon Scouters, if Megatron accepted an alliance with the Virons and they were in separate bases. She knew that was also very likely and had to find some way to ask Optimus about the situation. This seemed like the perfect moment.

"Optimus, I know we just met, but I wish to make an alliance with the Autobots. The probability that the Virons will do the same with the Decepticons is too high for either one of our factions to risk staying alone. The Decepticons on this planet seem to have the resources and the Virons would bring the brutality that will endanger this planet." Pandimala answered. They needed to combine strength if they were going to stand a chance against the eventual Decepticon-Viron alliance.

Optimus seemed to be in the same thoughts. "I have thought about this too. Now, I must ask, is what happened to Beatdrop the most that the Virons will do to Cybertronians?"

Pandimala shook her helm. "Not even close. What they did there was light, probably of fear that they would be discovered too soon. Some of my troops have escaped from their time with the Virons with injuries that even the fiercest battle between Autobot and Decepticon couldn't do to them."

"And the others?" Optimus questioned.

Pandimala sighed and averted her gaze from the Prime. "They don't come back."

The base went silent at that and she realized that everyone was listening. She knew that her troops were mainly thinking of the latest victims of the Virons. Beatdrop's femme friend, along with the rest of her troop, called Team Nitro, had been on their way to rendezvous with their main ship, which was currently space dust, when a Viron hunting team found their ship. The group fled and nothing was heard from them again. The Autobots and humans just looked shocked.

"So, from your experience with these Virons, will they keep the alliance that they have made with Megatron?" Prowl asked her.

Pandimala shook her helm. "If Contagion wasn't with them, then maybe. But, with Contagion there, their leader, then what will most likely happen will be that they will end up overthrowing Megatron somehow and taking control of the Decepticons by force. And if our two factions are separate when that happens, then we are doomed. The combined force of the Decepticons and the Virons would wipe us out, that I am certain."

The base was again silent for a few clicks, everyone probably pondering about what that would entail. Well, she knew the answer to that. It meant that the Autobots and Dragon Scouters would be used as slaves and torture toys while humanity would be eradicated with, yet again, torture practices.

"What do you propose for this alliance?" Optimus asked.

Pandimala knew that she had to go into her serious leader mode, as much as she hated it, before saying, "My troops are mine to command, unless I give the bot in charge for that particular mission permission before they leave. We have a surplus of energon at our current base. I believe that we should store the energon there, just in case we are ever discovered here. That way, we have reserves. Only keep enough here for a human week at most."

Optimus nodded. "Very well. But, I believe that you should stay at our base then. It would make this alliance transition much smoother and we will all be ready for an attack. My Autobots will be under my command unless given to one of your bots. I will also need files on the Virons that are here so we know what we will be up against." He then asked. "Do you need files for the Decepticons?"

Pandimala was about to shake her helm when she remembered something. "Just on Soundwave. We have thought that he was offline for quite some time and are behind on his data. But, we have sufficient profiles on the rest of the Decepticon higher command that is still online."

Optimus seemed slightly shocked at her revelation that they had been keeping tabs on their factions but quickly returned to that annoyingly neutral look before nodding. "Then I do not see a problem with it. But, I must ask the rest of the Autobots here if they accept this Alliance."

Pandimala nodded, but not in understanding. Shouldn't a leader know how their troops think? Pandimala knew most of her troops, if not all of them, and made it her job to get to know them on a personal level. That way, she knew their preferences and dislikes. Like how she knew that Beatdrop had a habit of making up new music if he was deeply concentrated on a project that he was working on, or how Balm was shy most of the time except for when those she cared about were hurt or threatened, or how Stormfire was really a big softy and only put up the tough mech charade around bots who didn't know him, or when he was trying to make a point.

But, she didn't comment on it as Optimus asked the other Autobots if they agreed. The answer was a unanimous yes, even from Prowl, which somewhat surprised her. From what she had gained from their intelligence, Prowl was the more cautious mech, looking at things from every angle. She must have presented her case pretty well.

"Very well then," She then held out her servo. "Shall we shake on it?"

He looked at her in confusion. "Are you not going to ask your team if they agree to this alliance?"

Pandimala was about to answer when Beatdrop and Stormfire burst out in laughter and fell to the ground.

"BWHAHAHAHAHAHA! That was too funny!" They both said at the same time as they tried to stand again.

Hopefully, one of her bots was going to explain this to them, since the Autobots were looking at her like she was some sort of dictator and wanted to kick her aft, well, try to kick her aft anyways. While she wouldn't mind kicking their afts to Nebulon, she knew that they needed everybot in fighting condition if the Virons and Decepticons suddenly attacked.

"She doesn't need to ask us." Balm started to explain. "The Dragon Scouters are more like a family faction than a war faction. We know each other pretty well, though we sometimes get a surprise or two, and Pandimala knows what we will say so she doesn't have to waste her time in asking us if we approve, because we all do."

Stormfire nodded. "From a tactile point of view, it is the most logical thing to do. While we can take on the Virons quite well on our own, as Raf there has seen, we would not be able to handle both them and the Decepticon legions. Plus, I wouldn't want to make Balm unhappy. She can get quite cranky when she isn't happy." He then let out a yelp as Balm punched his arm, though the femme was smiling.

Beatdrop nodded. "Plus, what fun would it be if we left here now? You know how many pranks I thought up when you all had me sitting in that cell _without _any music?"

Pandimala felt bad for the Autobots. They had released a pranking monster that none of them had ever seen. Everyone on the Dragon Scouter side knew that Beatdrop needed his music and you were not to mess with it, thanks to a small encounter between her brother and Beatdrop that involved some music files being deleted for being late.

But, while she felt bad, she couldn't help but let out a chuckle. Of course, she wasn't the only one. Balm and Stormfire had joined her. She had missed this when Beatdrop was gone. He was there to help remind them to have some fun when they would forget.

* * *

Ratchet watched how the Dragon Scouters interacted with each other before Pandimala shook Optimus servos. They seemed much more laid back then he had expected of bots who faced enemies as vicious as the Virons. He had been shocked when Pandimala had said that the Virons usually did much more damage to their victims than they did to Beatdrop. He had treated Beatdrop and those wounds had seemed pretty intense. If that was just the superficial stuff, he wondered how much Balm had seen since her joining of that team.

"You okay Ratch?"

Ratchet turned to Balm and nodded. "Just thinking about what your leader said. Beatdrop's wounds were only the superficial ones?"

Balm nodded. "Yeah, I've treated bots who have looked ten times worse then that, sometimes that has been Beatdrop and Pandimala."

"What about Stormfire?" Ratchet asked. He wondered why she didn't make sure that her mate was healed by her.

Balm let out a laugh. "Well, if he ever did get anywhere near that damaged, I usually got there to stop that from happening. You saw my display with the Insecticons. I am usually much worse when I get like that. Why do you think Beatdrop had his mini-freakout when he said I changed my song?"

Ratchet let out a rare chuckle at Balm's tone. She seemed very happy, even after all of this time. Thankfully, the war had not changed her personality.

"I wasn't that bad." Beatdrop complained, dropping in on their conversation.

Pandimala let out a laugh as she joined them. "Oh, no. You were much worse. I saw your fear from the little training I have. Can you imagine if Remcy was here? He would be right next to me laughing."

Ratchet raised an optic ridge at the name. It sounded somewhat familiar.

"_Wait, you know Remcy? He's alive?_" Bumblebee asked.

That was when Ratchet remembered. Autobot intelligence had gotten word from an unknown source that Bumblebee was injured and needed help. When they had arrived, the young mech had been somewhat fixed and, when Bumblebee had come through, he had said something about a neutral named Remcy helping him.

Pandimala looked like she knew though, and nodded. "Yes. He is my head communications officer."

That caught the rest of the Autobots attention and soon they all came over.

"Who are your officers?" Prowl asked.

Ratchet turned to Pandimala and saw that she looked like she was thinking. "Well, I'm the leader. My brother is my SIC, Balm here is my chief medical officer, Stormfire is my weapon specialist, Remcy is my communication's officer, Zarron is my head scout, and I think that is it." Pandimala stated in response.

Ratchet went down the list and realized that she hadn't named her brother. But, he could understand. She didn't want him to get hurt, most likely, and didn't trust them enough with his name yet. He knew that she was probably trusting them a lot in saying that he was her brother.

"What is your brother's name?" Miko asked. Ratchet shook his head at that. She was too curious for her own good.

But, Pandimala just let out a laugh and said, "You'll find out in time. Once he gets here with the bots he shared an escape pod with."

"What happened to your ship anyways? The debris made it look like the Nemesis would be the size of an exploration ship." Blaster asked.

He was curious about that too. What had caused their ship to explode?

The glare that Balm was giving her mate, though, made him pretty sure that he had something to do with it. "Well, we were visiting an inhabited moon near Tetra-5 and my brilliant bondmate and a few of the other bots decided to get in a brawl with some of the lowlifes there. Well, those lowlifes ended up knowing a few Virons and told them that Stormfire had been on the planet. Since the Virons know that Storm travels with the main group, it did not take them long to track our ship down and we were ambushed. That was when 'Mala had Remcy send out the SOS that you most likely picked up. But, after a few attacks, we realized that they were aiming mainly at the area around our engine room and so the only chance we had left was to evacuate and separate. 'Mala told everyone that they were to meet up at her signal once they were safe."

"But, I didn't plan on ending up on a planet where the atmosphere would mess with the signal." Pandimala stated, taking over. "So, now it will be a waiting game to see who shows up first."

Ratchet was curious about what sort of other bots they had on their team. He knew Remcy but the mech Zarron, and of course, her brother, were complete mysteries to him. He wondered what they would be like. If they were anything like the Scouters already at base, then this was going to be a very interesting alliance.

* * *

Soundwave felt extremely annoyed as Soundbite and the rest of the Virons walked up. He couldn't stand Soundbite before this war and he didn't want to know if he could handle the mech now.

"Megatron," the mech known as Contagion greeted, "this will be just a temporary alliance until the Dragon Scouters are no longer a problem. My troops are mine and yours are yours. Prisoners that we capture are ours and ones that you capture are yours. We deal with our prisoners in our own ways. Are we agreed?"

Frag. This mech didn't waste any time with the pleasantries. Straight to business. Soundwave knew that he would have to get a lot more information on both the Virons and the Dragon Scouters. Megatron needed to know who they were up against, and who their new allies were.

Megatron nodded. "Yes, those terms seem reasonable." He then motioned to Soundwave. "I believe that our intelligence officers should exchange information seeing as how they will be working together." He then turned to him. "Soundwave,"

Soundwave simply nodded and turned to the Virons. He was hoping with all that he could that their intelligence bot wasn't,

"Soundbite, go on and get the information. I believe that Megatron and I have much to discuss." Contagion stated before walking over to Megatron.

Soundwave internally growled at his luck. Why did it have to be Soundbite? Well, Soundwave couldn't argue with his master so he nodded before opening a bridge to the Nemesis. When they were gone, and it was just him and Soundbite, Soundwave started to put all the information that this bot needed to know in a data packet.

"So, you're name's Soundwave. I knew a bot named Soundwave once. Offlined in the beginning of the war. Stupid fragger couldn't even survive this was when I could. Oh well." Soundbite stated before saying, "So, where is this information?"

The file packet had just finished so he sent it to the mech. Soundbite seemed to freeze as he read the information. But, instead of going off on a tangent about it, like Soundwave had feared, Soundbite simply nodded. "Interesting. Well, here is a data packet on our information. Don't lose it."

When Soundwave received the packet, he scanned it for any viruses before sending a copy to Megatron. His leader would want to look at it more thoroughly.

"Well, I guess we had better catch up with our leaders on your ship." Soundbite stated.

Soundwave only responded by opening up the bridge. He did not want to answer Soundbite in any other way because he wanted to use the fact that said Viron did not recognize him against said mech until it was too late.

When he walked through the bridge, Soundwave walked to the med bay. He had a check up with Knockout and he wanted to get it done as quickly as he could. Plus, Knockout was a lead source of gossip on the ship and Soundwave would be able to see all that he had missed.

When he walked into the med bay, Soundwave was surprised to see Knockout trying to hide a picture frame.

"**What is that?**" He asked using a random clip from his past that sounded like a mech.

Knockout looked at him wearily before sighing. "Well, I guess since you know somebot there too, then you can see this."

Soundwave was confused by what the red medic was talking about until he saw the picture. In it, Soundwave could see Ratchet, Knockout, and the femme that had offlined the two Insecticons, Balm. They were all standing in the med bay, though only Balm was smiling. Ratchet and Knockout were glaring at each other for some unknown reason.

"Balm made me keep this before she left. She made us take it and, that day, the old bot and I had gotten into a fight and we didn't want to smile for the camera. I've had this with me since the war started." Knockout explained. Well, given how much the teacher and student fought, he wasn't surprised by the arguing that they were doing.

"**Her reaction?**" He asked, using Beatdrop's voice from his past.

Knockout looked a little confused by his clip voice but said, "When she saw how the picture turned out, she dragged us both to the wash racks and locked us in there with each other for a couple of cycles." He then asked, "So, what's the deal with you and Beatdrop? How do you know him?"

Soundwave didn't like giving out information about himself but Knockout had just told him about his past with the Dragon Scouter. Plus, if Knockout tried to tell anybot about what he was about to say, well, he had a lot of blackmail on the car mech that he could use. "**Grew up with him in Kaon.**" Soundwave explained.

Knockout seemed to not press the matter, thankfully, and instead said, "So, let's get that check up started and I can tell you about how those Viron-fraggers have been acting since they got here."

Soundwave nodded and laid down on the med berth. He did not want to be unprepared for what the Virons could bring. He had to meet up with Beatdrop sometime and gain more information that way.

* * *

Blaster knew that all he had to do was follow the music and he would find Beatdrop. The mech seemed to be playing it constantly since the alliance between their two factions had been solidified. Blaster had been curious as to what the mech was doing and decided to find the mech. But, that wasn't the only reason that Blaster was seeking him out. Ever since he had seen Beatdrop, Blaster felt like he knew the bot from somewhere, but his memory wasn't very good at remembering much from before the war started. He had been in proximity of a blast and said blast had dislodged some of his memory files. He knew that he was raised near Kaon but, besides a few flashes, he didn't remember anything until Orion had become Optimus Prime.

"Hold it still Jazz." He heard Beatdrop say.

Now Blaster was curious. So, he walked into the training room and saw that the two of them were setting something up. "So, you two setting up one of those pranks you promised us Beatdrop?" Blaster asked.

The two mechs concentrated on their work for a few nano-clicks before looking at him and Beatdrop said, "You wish. I'm just helping to update this room a little with some tech that I had in reserve." He then smirked. "The pranks are going to be so much fun though."

Blaster knew that he had to ask Beatdrop if he knew him. "Beatdrop, can I ask you something?" Blaster asked.

"This about your memories before the war mech?" Jazz asked.

Blaster nodded at Jazz before returning his attention to Beatdrop. "I was hit by a blast that caused my memory files to get dislodged. The medics can't access the current stream to get them back into sync and suggested that I try and find bots that I might have known in Kaon to help. You seem familiar but I just can't remember."

Beatdrop stared at him in shock for a few nano-clicks before saying, "I was wondering why you didn't recognize me. You used to be friends with Soundbite, that Viron that looked like me, and used to pick on Soundwave and I." Blaster must have had a shocked look on his faceplate because Beatdrop added, "Yes, that Soundwave. Well, that changed after you and Soundbite got your weapons upgrades. You two were about to give us a beat down but, when Soundbite suggested that you use your weapons on us, you said no and he knocked you out. After that day, we became the best of friends, the three of us. But, a few stellar cycles before we became adults, you moved to Iacon. Then, we lost contact with you. About ten stellar cycles after you left, I went to Iacon to see if I could catch up with you. But, when I finally found a bot who knew you, they said that you had moved to Polyhex for your work. I didn't have enough credits to go see you at the time so I stayed in Iacon. Soundwave and I kept contact for quite a few stellar cycle, until it looked like war was coming. Then, we both kind of stopped talking and then I heard that he had died. I never heard anything about either of you after that again, until I saw you here after you all brought me in."

Now it was all coming back. The times when he would listen to music with Beatdrop and Soundwave while they would sit on some random rooftop in Kaon. Of course, they had maybe downloaded a few songs that were from off world and, at the time, forbidden to listen to by the higher class, but they didn't care. What they cared about was how good the music made them feel.

"Now I remember." Blaster stated. He then glanced at Beatdrop. "Can we be friends again?"

Beatdrop let out a laugh. "Blaster, I never stopped being friends with you." He then stepped back before saying to Jazz. "Well, that looks like it should be alright." He then glanced at the two of them before asking, "You two want to help me with my pranks?"

Blaster couldn't pass up an opprotunity like that so he nodded. "What do you have planned?"

Beatdrop smirked. "Patience my dear friend. Our first one is going to need a few items. We will have to get Miko's help with this but it should work out alright."

The three then huddled together and came up with a plan. This was going to be great. Blaster was glad that they were allies with the Dragon Scouters. Life around base was going to be very upbeat with them around.

* * *

**Authoress: Well, I guess that is it for this chapter.**

**Beatdrop: Yes, and I hope you continue to update us.**

**Authoress: Well, you all have the people who voted on my Poll to thank. You tied with another story and almost weren't on the list. You are just lucky that I decided to be nice.**

**Beadrop: *to voters* Thank you all so much!**

* * *

**AN: And again, happy birthday to The Almighty Pickle Lord XD! Hope it is a good one and I hope this was a good gift from me to you. If your birthday is coming up and you would like me to update any of my stories, or even start a new one that is in my story ideas on my profile, then I am most willing to try and get it done by your birthday. Just give me a couple days of advance so I have time to work on it. If you don't, well, it might end up being a little late. Next chapter is going to start the introduction of the SIC for Pandimala. I wonder who that is? Well, until then, please drop a review, even if it is to say hi. *runs off to shoot the unicorn looking Unicron with my marsh mellow ****bazooka***


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